Crossing That Fine Line revised
by Anomalie
Summary: Jack and Sam become stranded offworld. I originally posted this story without chapters, and it is lengthy, so hopefully this will make for an eaiser read.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Crossing That Fine Line

Author: Anomalie

Summary: The President wants the SGC to set up an off world supply base. General O'Neill accompanies SG1 to meet a Tok'ra operative at the site. A gate malfunction strands O'Neill and Carter on an unknown planet.

Rating: T

Spoilers: AU set in season 8 before Gemini.

Disclaimer: I don't own them, don't own Stargate SG1, I get no profit.

Crossing That Fine Line

(Broken down into chapters)

The President wanted the SGC to set up a supply base to be a stopping off point for SG teams and Tok'ra operatives that needed a safe place to disappear and get supplies. General O'Neill, Colonel Carter, Daniel Jackson, Teal'c, and SG3 were to meet with a representative from the Tok'ra there to set up the base.

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General O'Neill and Colonel Carter had just stepped through the gate when the lights on the gate itself dimmed and the worm hole disengaged.

"What just happened?" Daniel asked turning around to face Teal'c; standing on the gate ramp, waiting to disembark.

"I do not know." Teal'c replied.

"The dialing computer is registering some sort of error or malfunction." A voice came over the speakers in the gate room. Daniel and Teal'c turned and headed for the control room.

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The gate shut off as soon as Carter and O'Neill stepped through.

"Sir, what just happened?"

"I don't know you're the smart one."

Carter walked over to the DHD while O'Neill provided cover. She put her hand on the symbols. Nothing happened. She took a closer look at the DHD.

"Sir this DHD does not have all of its parts."

"Great. So what are you saying exactly?"

"I am saying that this will definitely be a one way trip if we can't find the parts." She put her hands inside the casing; running her hands along the inside to see what was left. Not much.

"Is there anyway you can rig it to work?" Jack said, eyeing the DHD.

"I don't think so. It is just basically an empty shell. I don't even think there is power to the DHD." Sam said, wiping her hands on her pants.

"But there is power to the gate obviously." Jack said, gesturing to the stargate.

"Yeah, but that doesn't help us. There was power to establish an incoming wormhole, but not an out going one."

"Look around and see if you can find anything. I am going to make a brief sweep of the area."

"Yes sir"

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"So do we dial up again?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, let's try again, maybe we lost the signal somehow and they are on PHX4173 already." Colonel Reynolds said.

"Airman, dial the gate."

"Yes sir."

The room was filled with a brilliant flash as the worm hole was established.. They watched as the MALP slowly ascended the ramp towards the gate. "Tracking MALP telemetry." Walter said.

Daniel hoped that Jack and Sam had made it through to the other side.

"General O'Neil, Colonel Carter please respond."

No answer was received. The MALP's camera showed no sign of them or anyone else around the gate. The picture was overcast, dark. It was raining.

"This is not good." Daniel said looking at the monitor. "It's raining, maybe they headed for cover."

"Indeed. May we go through the gate and search for them?" Teal'c asked.

"Yes, I will send SG 3 and the remainder of SG 1 to check it out." Reynolds said.

"Thank you" Daniel said heading towards the gate room. Teal'c nodded and followed Daniel. "Daniel Jackson, the supplies that were sent through the gate did not appear to be in close proximity to the gate."

Daniel sighed, "I know Teal'c, and I have a bad feeling about this." Daniel stopped and turned to Teal'c. "I think that we should call Washington, we need General Hammond."

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"The gate malfunctioned. Daniel and Teal'c either got sent to where we were supposed to go, or they didn't go anywhere at all." Carter said kicking a rock next to her boot.

Jack looked from the stargate, to the DHD, to Sam. "This is kind of Déjà vu."

"I know" she acknowledged.

"We made it through then, we will make it now." O'Neill thought of their trip to Antarctica through the beta gate. He shivered just thinking about it.

"We know more now, and neither of us is injured this time."

"Yeah, I don't need to add to my list of broken bones."

Carter smiled. The last time the gate malfunctioned like this it sent them hurtling through to the other side.

Jack remembered hitting the cold, very hard ground. He remembered feeling his leg snap and a blow to his ribs and lungs. Carter had had her first try at splinting a broken leg in the field. Although he had rather it had been someone else's leg. She had worked so hard to dig the DHD out of the ice and snow, only to find that they couldn't dial home. Technically because they were home, just not at the right gate. They made it through, even though he was out of commission due to the broken leg. They made it.

"Carter" O'Neill said, bringing Carter back to the present.

"I can't believe the DHD is missing parts." Carter said, running her hand through her hair.

"Yeah, that sucks"

"I hope that Daniel and Teal'c are safe."

"Yeah, well I hope we are safe."

She nodded and scanned the environment. The area around the gate was heavily wooded. The gate was in a clearing. The grass around the gate was fairly tall, and there were no discernable paths around the gate. No sign of civilization. She looked up in the sky; it was clear with very little cloud cover. There were two suns. One sun smaller than the other, but there was two. They were definitely not on earth. O'Neill had tried to contact the SGC, but was unsuccessful.

"Nothing" he said shaking his head. "I had to try one last time; just in case we were on the same planet again." He said smiling.

"Sir look" Carter said as she pointed to the suns. He squinted in the direction she pointed.

"Oh" he said, "Definitely not Kansas."

She smiled.

"The SGC should have known at once that something was wrong."

"Yeah well, let's hope so"

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"General Hammond sir, it's good to see you again." Walter said as Hammond had just arrived from Washington.

"Thank you airman. How long since they went through the gate?"

"Twenty four hours, sir"

"No attempts to dial home? What about radio signals?" Hammond asked.

"Nothing sir"

"I don't like that sound of that. Have we dialed up PHX4173?"

"Yes sir, Daniel Jackson, Teal'c and SG 3 went through the gate to search about an hour ago. They are due to check in in a few minutes."

"Good I will contact them myself. Dial it up."

"Yes sir"

The lights on the gate came on as the dialing sequence commenced. A blue flash lit the room as the wormhole was established. "Wormhole established sir"

Hammond leaned over the console and pushed a button. "Dr. Jackson please respond."

The crackle of a radio came over the speaker. "General Hammond is that you?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, Dr Jackson. With General O'Neill missing, they called me in to take temporary command of the SCG."

"Good to have you back general."

"Good to be back, not under these circumstances. Is there any sign of Colonel Carter and General O'Neill?"

"No, we don't think they ever made it here general."

"Where else could they be?"

"That's just it, I don't know general."

Hammond pursed his lips and frowned. "I want you to proceed with the current mission and then return home. We need to get this mess figured out and get our people home. Report back in two hours."

"Okay general"

"Hammond out"

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"The terrain and atmosphere are much like earth." Carter said taking readings on samples of the air and soil.

"Looks a bit like home. It's not though, is it?"

"No sir, it is not. But it may be if we can't figure out how to get the DHD working"

O'Neill nodded. "We should find some where to make camp; it looks to get dark soon."

"I agree sir."

They walked for what seemed like miles from the stargate towards the sunset. The terrain was rocky with sparse patches of brown grass scattered around. It was dry, looked like it had not rained in a while. They were probably a good hour and 30 minutes walk from the gate when, they came upon a cave. The cave mouth was facing opposite the sunset. It was on a rocky hill and looked to be fairly large from the outside. They climbed up the hill and shined their flashlights into the cave. It was open in the middle, off to the left of the entrance was a smaller space. To the right, back into the cave was anther smaller 'room'.

They didn't detect any sign of inhabitants. Daniel would have been disappointed. Not even cave paintings.

"It should stay warmer here because the sun is on it all day." O'Neill said, nodding towards the cave.

Carter agreed. "Yes sir, I think this looks like a good spot."

O'Neill nodded. "Let's make camp."

They had left the MALP at the gate, but the FRED carrying the supplies went with them. It was almost completely dark by the time they had reached the cave. They ended up doing most everything by flashlight. They set up a tent and started a fire. They also set up perimeter alarms so that they would have warning of any visitors.

The cave was illuminated by the flickers of the campfire. The ceiling was at least ten feet at the highest point in the middle and went down to around five feet at the sides. The entrance to the cave was barely wide enough to fit the FRED through. Carter was amazed that nothing or no one (she hoped) was living in it.

"Sir, we might as well go through the supplies to see what we can use." Carter said looking over the carefully packed items.

"Yeah, you are right. Let's just lay them all out here on the floor." O'Neil motioned with his hands.

They started unpacking some of the supplies and placing them in piles.

"This one says hairnets." Carter said smiling.

"What is up with that?" Jack said shaking his head.

"I will set in the 'not so important to survival' pile."

"Good plan"

They spent the good part of two hours sorting, organizing and taking inventory of supplies. Carter came up with places to store each item; each had a category in which it could be sorted. Carter, the organization queen.

They put all the supplies in the 'right wing' as O'Neill had called it. Carter argued that it was only right if you were facing the back wall, but not if facing the entrance. "Fine then," he had said, "I will call it the supply wing." She snorted. "Whatever" They parked FRED in front of the entrance to the cave as a makeshift door.

"Well, we have plenty of MREs for the time being."

"And don't forget the hairnets."

She smiled. They had got a lot accomplished. They were very lucky that the supplies had gone through the gate before they had. It would sure make their survival until rescue a lot easier.

"At least we have food, water, and shelter at the moment."

At this point O'Neill was glad that the shelter hadn't come with bats or any other large creepy crawlies. Well, that they could see yet.

"We should probably try to get some sleep." Carter said as she unzipped a sleeping bag.

"You sleep, I stand guard." O'Neill grunted.

Carter laughed, shaking her head. Colonel Caveman would have fit perfectly. Too bad he was a general. "Ah, okay. Wake me in a few hours so I can take over."

He just grunted and smiled.

She climbed into the tent and snuggled into a sleeping bag. She rested her head on a spare blanket, her P90 tucked safely next to her. It had been a long day. She hoped tomorrow she would find a way to get the DHD working. She slowly drifted off to sleep with the sound of the crackling fire.

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"What if they didn't go to PHX4173 because the gate malfunctioned and the wormhole jumped and lost its lock?" Daniel pondered.

Teal'c and he were in the control room looking through the gate logs.

"This reading shows that there was an energy surge coming through the gate." He paused and adjusted his glasses. "It was raining when we got to PHX4173 right?"

"Indeed"

"Then maybe just after we established a wormhole, the gate was struck by lightening. That could have caused a power surge enough to cause the gate to jump to another destination." Daniel stood up and began to wander around the room.

"Let us hope that the supplies that were sent first are with them" Teal'c said.

"Yeah, that would make things much easier" Daniel paused, "I think we've got something here Teal'c. Let's run it by the General."

"Indeed" Teal'c said with a nod.

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	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own them, don't own Stargate SG1, I get no profit.

"It's beautiful here." O'Neill said as they sat by a lake to rest. They had been exploring as much ground as they could the past five days. Heading out in different directions everyday, they wanted to familiarize themselves with their surroundings. This was their best find yet.

"If I had known there was a lake here, I'd been here sooner."

Carter tested the water for contaminants. "Sir, the water appears uncontaminated."

"Good, maybe there's something edible in this water."

"Fishing sir?"

"Something besides MREs. Besides, they won't last forever."

She nodded "This is true."

The lake was not large, but it was by no means small either. The side O'Neill and Carter were on was much like a beach, more dirt than sand though. It looked as though it had not rained for a couple of weeks. The water had receded a few feet. The water was fairly clear and the bottom was rocky. O'Neill wasn't sure, but he thought he could see a stream flowing into the lake on the other side. The opposite side of the lake had many trees around it and along the stream.

It kind of reminded O'Neill of a lake he had been to in Minnesota. He was glad they had found this place. It was also the first sign of fresh water. Which they were going to need of it didn't rain soon. Carter had set up tarps to catch any moisture they could use. She said it should be quite effective with rain.

O'Neill removed his jacket and shoved it into his pack. Carter did the same. It was a warm day that was getting hotter as the twin suns were climbing in the sky. They had started out that morning while it was still dark; as they had every morning for the last five days. It had not been too long before they had happened upon the lake. Probably close to an hour walk. They broke open their MREs.

"Ah, fine cuisine." O'Neill commented as he took a bite.

Carter smiled, "Macaroni and cheese flavored chicken." She took a few bites before continuing. "I wonder if they have got Daniel trying to find us."

"He figured it out the last time the gate malfunctioned."

"Yeah, I am hoping that he figures it out this time as well." Sam was sure that Daniel and the rest of the SGC would figure something out.

They finished the meal and packed up to keep going.

"Remember where this lake was Carter."

"Yes sir, maybe I will actually get to go fishing with you after all." She said grinning.

"Maybe" he said with a smile. "C'mon, let's keep moving."

They returned to camp at night fall. No sign of intelligent life; friend or foe. They had encountered several birds, rodents and other small animals during their journey.

"Well, if there were other beings here, I think they are gone now." Carter said putting down her gear.

"Yeah, I think we may be alone here." O'Neill said, lighting a lantern.

"Well, I supposed that is good and bad. No one to cause us harm, but no one to help is out either."

"How many days have we been here?" O'Neill asked, pulling the Velcro cover away and looking down at his watch.

"This is the end of the sixth day sir."

"That's what I thought, it seems like we just got here." He began getting the evenings MREs out.

Carter got the dishes out and set one in front of O'Neill, he handed her a MRE. "We have been here nearly a week now and I still can't figure out how we are going to get home. They don't even know where to look for us." She said, carefully pulling open the pouches.

"They'll figure something out Carter; we've got a lot of smart people on our side."

Carter nodded, yawning. "I know"

"Let's finish eating and head for bed." O'Neill said. He was exhausted.

Carter nodded.

O'Neill woke up as sunlight filled the tent. Carter was lying with her head on his chest, arm draped over him. She was so peaceful and content. He hated to wake her. "Carter"

She stirred but didn't wake. O'Neill thought back to when they were stranded in Antarctica. He had woken up to a similar situation. Carter cuddled up to him; her face in his neck, trying to keep warm. He tried again to wake her, this time rubbing her shoulder. "Carter"

This time she opened her eyes. She realized where she was almost at once. She sat up. "Sorry sir"

He smiled, "It's alright Carter"

She quickly stood. "I think that I will go get cleaned up."

"Alright, I will get the food out"

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"General, I think that we should try to contact Jacob and the Tok'ra."

"I agree with you Dr. Jackson. Maybe they can help us out."

"I am sure that Jacob would want to know what is going on." Daniel said.

"I will contact the Tokra and request their help. Let's meet back here at 1400 hours."

"Okay general."

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"Daniel, Teal'c good to see you both." Jacob said patting Daniel on the shoulder.

"Sorry it isn't under better circumstances." Daniel said. "We need your help."

"Anything I can do to get Sam back home safe."

"Have you ever heard of the gate doing something like this before? I know that before, when we got sent here, Sam and Jack got sent to the Antarctic gate because an energy weapon blast hit the gate. It caused a surge of power that caused the gate to 'skip'."

"Selmac says it is possible that the gate simply malfunctioned and sent them to the wrong destination. But more than likely it is somewhere close to the destination. The problem is that there must be something wrong with the gate. Otherwise they would have come back by now."

"Or they have encountered hostile resistance." Teal'c added.

"That also could be true, but let's stay positive shall we." Jacob said.

Teal'c nodded.

"Is there anyway the Tokra could help with the search. The Prometheus is on a mission and cannot be recalled. It won't return for a few months. If we had at least one ship to help, we may find them." General Hammond interjected.

"I will check, I can't say for sure though." Jacob answered. "I will do my best to persuade and encourage the help."

"Thanks Jacob"

"Please keep me posted and let me know if you hear from Sam."

"We will Jacob"

"I should get back then so we can get started." Jacob said.

"Thanks again." Hammond said, reaching out for Jacob's hand.

"No, thank you George." Jacob took his hand and shook it.

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O'Neill was preparing their MREs while Carter got cleaned up. They had set up a semi private area to get cleaned up. Mostly, they just sponge bathed. Carter said it was a difficult way to get clean, but it worked. It was better than being dirty. They would use a wet rag to get soaped up and water bag to rinse off. Hair was more difficult. Usually Carter or O'Neill would dry off and dress, and then one would pour the water over the other's head to wash/rinse. Once they found the lake they had taken baths (separately of course).

They had also dug a hole to serve as the latrine. O'Neill had said he was just glad that they had shovels. The job would have been much more difficult without. They were careful not to put the latrine too close, but not too far away. Walking a half mile to the latrine late at night, in the dark, was not ideal.

"Carter, food's ready." O'Neill yelled in Carter's direction.

"Okay" he heard her yell as he finished his MRE. She came into the cave moments later in clean clothes they had found in the supplies. Carter had run out of her own clothes so she was wearing some extras. The pants were huge on her.

"Cute" O'Neill chuckled

"Very funny, at least they are clean." She paused, "Time to do laundry I think."

"Food's ready, if you can call it that"

She nodded and sat down to eat. They had a small camp stove that O'Neill had warmed up some weak tea to go with their meal.

"So, what do you want to do today?" He said, watching her roll up the pants legs.

"I don't know sir. I feel like I should have gotten us out of here by now." She said, wringing her hands. He put down his meal and looked over at her.

"Y'know, you need to relax. Let's just take the day off. Maybe do some fishing." He said, hoping she would say yes. C'mon, she had to say yes. There were no excuses here. The DHD definitely wasn't going to start working anytime soon, and they both knew that.

She smiled and nodded, "okay"

_Sweet_ he thought.

"Let's get the gear; we've got an hour's walk ahead of us."

They spent the day at the lake. It was an oddly warm day. They decided to go for a swim in their clothes to cool off. They took off their socks and boots and waded in. The bottom was lined with smooth rocks. O'Neill took his shirt off and rung it out. He playfully splashed Carter. She retaliated so quickly that O'Neill had his mouth open and caught a great deal of the lake in his mouth. He coughed and gagged briefly, but shook it off.

Carter put her hand up to her mouth. "Sorry sir. Are you okay?"

"Yes, Colonel." He paused, giving her a stern look. "As I was about to say, maybe we should get hair washed while we're here."

Carter blushed, "Good idea sir. I will get the soap."

Carter was soaping up her hair when O'Neill snuck up behind her and pushed a wave of water over her. She squealed and began to laugh.

They called a truce and decided to do some fishing. O'Neill had fabricated some poles out of miscellaneous supplies. They sat and fished with the makeshift poles O'Neill had made. By the time they caught something, they were almost dry. O'Neill started a fire and cleaned and cooked their catch. They both agreed it was much better than MREs. It began to get dark so they headed back towards camp.

"So" O'Neill said as they were walking, "How's Pete?"

She hesitated a moment before answering. "Okay, I guess"

O'Neill raised his eyebrow. "Okay?"

She looked to the ground. "Can we not talk about Pete?"

He nodded. "Okay."

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They arrived back at camp in the dark. Carter put down her pack and sat next to it on the floor of the cave. O'Neill started a fire in their 'fire place'. It was barely going when Carter spoke.

"Sir"

"Yes Carter"

"I am not getting married." She said staring blankly.

"What? Why?" He said looking over his shoulder at her.

She looked down at her feet. "I talk in my sleep." She paused and inhaled deeply. "I was talking in my sleep and Pete heard me."

"Heard what Carter?" He said, turning to face her.

"I guess that I said some things… to upset him."

"Carter, am I a mind reader?"

"I guess I said that I loved you." She blurted out, "On more than one occasion." She continued, "I called out to you when I was having a nightmare."

He looked to the floor of the cave, barely lit in the soft firelight. He looked back up at her, tears in her eyes threatening to stream down her face. She bit her lip.

"Carter, when did this happen?"

"Four days before we left." She said, running her fingers through her hair.

He just stared at her for a minute. "Why the hell didn't you tell me?"

She rose from her position on the floor and walked over to one of the cave's walls with her back to him. She was obviously crying. "Pete said I'd done this before and that he just didn't think that I was over you."

"Over me?" Jack said confused.

"He called it off." She paused, "I can't stand that I hurt him. I really didn't mean to."

He walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder and turned her to face him. Her face was shimmering with tears in the firelight. He didn't think that he had ever seen her so vulnerable. Or at least that she had let him see. He kept his distance and waited for her to finish.

"I told him that they were just dreams, but he didn't believe me."

She shook her head and looked away. "The next day he called everything off until I can get things together."

"Is that what he said?"

"No, it's what I said."

"Carter, what do you believe?"

She began to cry harder. "I have tried so hard. I just can't."

"Can't what?" He said confused.

"Can't stop…can't stop caring, thinking about you in that way." She paused, "I have failed. I can't even make myself happy, let myself go on."

He stood in front of her; hand still on her shoulder as if he was holding her at a distance. "Carter, you deserve so much more."

"No. I have had days to think about this. Long days to wonder if it will ever work with anyone else let alone with Pete." She folded her arms across her chest. "Somewhere in my subconscious, I still hold onto you. I can't move on."

"Carter, please don't make it me who keeps you from happiness."

She fell silent. They stood for a moment before she spoke. "I have made my decision."

"Decision?"

"You; I want you."

"Are you sure?"

"Please don't push me away anymore."

He thought for a minute. "Are you really sure? Do you know what you are getting into?"

"Yes."

He pulled her close to him and held her tightly. He ran his fingers through her hair and rubbed her back gently. He didn't know what to say, what to do. Sure, he definitely had feelings for her. But he was her CO. They wanted so much from each other that neither could give. At least not right now. He felt her warm breath on his neck. She sniffed and wrapped her arms around him. They stood in each others arms for a moment before he pulled away reluctantly.

"It's been a long day. Why don't we get some sleep."

She nodded, "I am sorry. It is just been hard being here with you and not saying anything."

"Sam, you could've told me before now."

"I wasn't sure what kind of reaction you would have to all this." She said quietly. "I didn't feel like being rejected again."

He looked into her eyes, full of tears. He pulled her close and kissed her forehead. "Carter, I would never reject you." He paused, "There's just rules, y'know?"

She nodded. "I know, I know all about the rules."

He felt her shiver. It was getting rather chilly. The fire was barely lit; he needed to put more wood on. "C'mon Carter, let's get settled in for the night."

"Okay" She said sniffling.

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	3. Chapter 3

The temperature was dropping rapidly and they were attempting to stay warm. They decided it would be warmest if they shared one sleeping bag and put the other underneath them with a few blankets on top. They had made the two person tent their 'sleeping quarters'.

"Comfy?" O'Neill asked as he rolled onto his side, propping himself up on his elbow.

"Yes, quite." Carter answered, lying on her back looking up at him.

"What is up with this weather? It was hot today."

"I wonder if this planet has seasons." Carter mused, starting up at the top of the tent.

"Because it feels like winter here?' He said, pulling the blankets up around them.

"Yeah, but there is no snow" She smiled "Do you think there is any other sentient life here besides us?"

"I don't know. It looks like a habitable planet, but there may be a reason that the DHD doesn't work." She paused, "I wonder if someone used the parts to get off this planet?"

"Is that possible?"

"If they already had a ship that needed a power source. There is a small naquada power supply cell in the DHD. This one is missing its. They may have used it to power something."

Jack nodded, "Too bad they were here first."

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"Samantha J. Carter, go lie down…now." Jack said.

Sam coughed and then protested. "I am fine sir."

Jack raised an eyebrow. Sam had been coughing all night, and therefore he hadn't got a lot of sleep. He had felt her forehead while she was sleeping; she had felt feverish. Jack couldn't get her to take her temperature. Probably because she knew she would have a slight fever.

"Sam." Jack said softly. He looked over at her and their eyes met. Some of their best communication had been with their eyes. Sam coughed again; holding her sides. Jack walked over to her and knelt down beside her. He put his hand on her back. He could feel the rattle of her breathing.

"C'mon" He said, poking her in the arm.

"Jack, it is the middle of the afternoon." She said, turning to him.

"Sam, please don't argue with me on this one." He stroked her back gently.

Sam looked to the ground and nodded. Jack helped her to her feet and led her towards the tent. Once inside, Sam crawled under the covers and Jack lay down beside her. He was tired from not sleeping the night before.

"You just wanted to take a nap." Sam accused, pointing a finger at him.

Jack smiled. "Oh yeah, yah got me." He said holding up his hands.

Sam laughed, and broke into a coughing fit. Jack rolled up an extra bedroll and helped Sam get propped up against it. In bed, Sam looked exhausted. She had dark circles under her puffy eyes. She was exhausted, but Jack could tell she was going to fight sleep. He scooted in close to her and began stroking her hair; trying to get her to relax.

Sam cleared her throat and looked up at him.

"What?" Jack asked, still stroking her hair.

"Jack…" She trailed off. He could see her thoughts reflected in her eyes.

"Do you want me to stop?" He asked.

Sam hesitated for a moment and then opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again. She shook her head.

Jack nodded and continued stroking. Sam slowly closed her eyes. Her breathing began to slow as she allowed herself to relax. She coughed. "I wish I had some medicine to give you for that cough." Jack said.

Sam smiled. "I know, I will get over it. It will just take a little longer."

Jack nodded and continued stroking her hair, face, and neck. Sam eventually dropped off to sleep and he decided that he had better do the same.

When Jack woke, Sam was no longer next to him. The tent flaps were closed, but he could see the firelight through the material. He sat up and pushed the tent flaps aside. Sam was writing in her journal by the fire. It was dark outside. She had let him sleep until it was dark. Sam looked up as she heard him exit the tent. She smiled and coughed.

"I see the cough is still hanging on." Jack said.

Sam nodded. "I figured I would let you get some sleep without me in there hacking up a lung."

Jack smiled. "Did you get any sleep?"

"Oh, about an hour or so." Sam said, closing her notebook and clipping her pen to the cover.

"How long was I out?" Jack asked, looking at the entrance to the cave; out into the darkness.

"Probably about three hours, give or take."

Jack shook his head. "I guess I must've been tired."

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I don't think I have given you a chance to get much sleep that last couple of nights."

"It's okay." Jack said, sitting down next to her by the fire.

"It gave you some time alone." Jack said, looking down at the notebook in her lap.

Sam closed her eyes and shook her head.

"Was alone time bad?" Jack asked.

Sam bit her lip. "No, just thinking."

"About?"

"Pete"

"Oh" Jack shifted his weight on the log bench.

"We left things kind of open. I really don't think that he wants to break it off."

"Even after what happened?' Jack asked.

Sam nodded. "Yeah. He was trying so hard to be understanding. But he did ask me some tough questions."

Jack's stomach twisted. "Like?"

Sam sighed and summoned her courage. "He asked if we had ever…if we…" She sighed, frustrated.

Jack looked up at her. "Shacked up?' He said smiling.

Sam smiled and continued. "He asked me if I loved you."

Jack could see that this was hard for her. He touched her hand. "Sam, we don't have to talk about this if you don't want to."

Sam shook her head. "No, I want you to know how I feel." She paused, "There is no one here to interrupt or walk in on us here."

Jack squeezed her hand. "Okay."

"I love you and I have for a long time."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Did you tell him that?"

Sam looked down at her feet. "No, I just said I didn't know how I felt; which may have been a worse answer."

They sat in silence a moment before Jack spoke. "Y'know, I feel the same way."

Sam smiled. She felt as if a weight had been lifted off of her. She scooted closer to him on the log. He put his arm around her and pulled her close.

"Jack"

"Yes Carter"

"I miss Janet."

"I know me too"

"I am not there for Cassie. She is my responsibility now. And I am not there for her."

"Carter, Sam, she'll be okay. The boys won't let anything happen to her." He paused, "And Janet has got family that she can stay with."

"I know, but she's all alone now. I can't be there for her. This job is my life, but sometimes I wish I had a normal life."

"No you don't. You just wish for pockets of normalness. You would miss it too much, believe me."

She put her head on his shoulder. "I guess so. I don't think I can give Cassie a normal life."

"Normal is so overrated." Jack said smiling.

Sam coughed and smiled faintly. "I hope we get home soon so she doesn't have to be alone." Cassie had come to live with Sam just after the funeral. Cassie had been preparing for graduation and college when Janet was killed. Sam had taken a brief week long leave to help Cassie get settled in.

"It's nice to have someone to come home to at night isn't it?" Jack said.

"Yeah, but I don't think I can be the caregiver that Janet was. It is a lot of work raising a teenager on your own." She paused, "She did a great job with Cassie."

"I am here to help if you need me. Besides, she is pretty well raised now. She just needs some guidance now and then. And I am always willing to help out when it comes to Cassie." He said, stroking her hand.

He put his arm around her and squeezed. "Thanks sir"

"No problem Carter"

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It had taken the Tok'ra high council a week to decide. Jacob had sent word through the gate that the Tok'ra had agreed to let him search with a cargo ship. Daniel and Teal'c had volunteered to go with Jacob and 'keep him company'.

Daniel had brought a list of planets, he had rated them as to which ones he thought Sam and Jack might be on. Hopefully the Prometheus would return soon and the list could be split between the two ships.

Daniel looked out at the line of hyperspace in front of him. "They are out there somewhere." He said aloud.

Jacob was standing at the console behind Daniel. "We'll find them Daniel." He said, coming up to stand behind Daniel.

"I know, I just hope they are safe."

"They are both survivors. As much as I hate to admit it; at least they are together. The odds are better at survival with two." Jacob said, sliding into the pilot's seat.

"I just hope those supplies ended up with them, wherever they are." Daniel said, looking over at Jacob.

"Yeah, that ups the odds of survival a bit."

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Sam was scrubbing clothes in a bucket of hot water with a bar of soap. These pants were particularly dirty due to her falling in a mud puddle the day after a rain storm. Jack had laughed at her as she had tried to brush the mud away. It had been so hot that day that the mud dried almost immediately.

The stain was stubborn, but she was persistent. Jack was washing the few dishes they had in a mesh bag sitting in boiling water. He pulled them out and hung them on a tree branch to drip dry. They had rigged up a clothesline with a piece of rope tied between two trees. It worked well as long as it wasn't too windy.

"There" Sam said, holding the pants up in front of herself. "Much better" she said as she rung them out. She walked over to the clothesline and hung the pants over the line. They had some extra clothes, but they took advantage of nice days to wash so they would have something clean the wear. Sam went back over to the bucket and began washing a T-Shirt. Jack came over to her with his delicates.

"Are you almost finished?" He asked.

She looked up at him and smiled. "Yeah, this is the last shirt."

He nodded, "Okay, then I can wash these next?"

"Yeah, I just changed the water after my muddy pants."

They usually did their own undergarments, but otherwise everything else went together. They had settled into a routine, a daily regimen. They cleaned up camp, washed dishes/clothes when needed, and inventoried supplies. Truthfully, they didn't have much else to do. Carter had asked O'Neill one of the times they were checking supplies what would happen if they ran out of soap. He answered simply, "We will be dirty."

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"Well, that's ten planets down…" Jacob said, sitting down in the pilot's seat.

"Yeah" Daniel said, walking up behind him.

"Shall we contact General Hammond?" Teal'c asked.

"Do we have anything to tell him? We've got nothing so far." Jacob said, studying the monitor in front of him.

Teal'c nodded.

"What is next on the list Daniel?' Jacob asked.

"P2X4170" Daniel answered.

Jacob raised his eyebrows after he fed the information into the flight computer. He sighed and shook his head.

"That is a Goa'uld occupied world."

"Oh great." Daniel said. "Now what do we do?"

"We search it very carefully."

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Being together 24 hours a day for weeks was started to wear on him. They were together a lot when working, but at least there was downtime that he could regroup and collect his thoughts. She was always there, always on his mind. She had gone for a walk to give them each some time alone. But all he could think about while she was gone was her. "I'm losing it." He said to himself. He cleaned up the dishes from breakfast. He boiled the water and submerged their glasses. He put the trash in a sack and went to set it outside. He pulled the dishes out of the water and dried them with a towel. Jack had been collecting small logs to fashion a door. At the moment they were next to the cave's entrance in a pile. 'That's my next project.' He thought. Jack was grateful that included in the supplies were two shovels, a mallet, and a hatchet. Sam had been gone for an hour now and was due back soon. He was just getting dishes put away when he heard her approaching.

"Hey" he said as soon as he saw her. "Did you have a good walk?"

"Yeah, it's a beautiful day." She said sitting down next to him.

"Yeah" He stared blankly ahead, trying to think about something or someone else.

"Are you okay?" She said, looking at him with those beautiful blue eyes.

He smiled. "Just distracted."

She nodded. "Do you want to go to the lake today?"

"Naw" he said shaking his head. "Let's stay around here today, go through supplies or something." Anything to keep his mind occupied, and off Carter.

"Okay"

They spent the day checking supplies and cleaning up camp. They had gathered all the garbage and burned as much as they could; putting the ashes in the latrine. They reorganized the supplies and fashioned the 'door' for the cave. Jack cut and shaped the logs with the hatchet and banded them together with rope. They slid it across the opening and then parked FRED up against it. Trouble was it made it very dark in the cave. Night had just fallen and they were just finishing their evening meal, when O'Neill broke the silence.

"So" O'Neill said as he took the last bite of his meal.

"So" Carter repeated.

"It's getting colder the longer we are here."

"Yeah" Carter said, a chill running though her. She shivered visibly.

"C'mere" he said as he motioned to her with his arm.

She scooted over next to him and he put his arm around her. Feeling her warm body against his was not helping his restraint. She put her head on his shoulder. That was it; he touched her hand and then squeezed it.

She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked over at him. He met her gaze. He leaned forward and gently brushed her lips with his. She didn't pull away. He kissed her lips harder, passionately. She pulled back.

"Sir"

"Carter," he whispered, "Don't call me sir." He held her face in his hands and kissed her until he shifted his weight and they fell backward off the log they were sitting on.

"Holy Hannah"

"Yeah"

They laid there for a moment on their backs, processing what had just happened.

"What was that?" She asked

"That Carter was a kiss." He said, still in awe of what he had done.

"I know that." She said, sitting up. "What happened to the rules, the regs?"

He turned his head towards her. "I think I just broke them." He had a wide grin that he could not seem to wipe from his face.

"Sir" She said quietly.

"I know Carter" He said looking up at her.

"So now what do we do?" She asked

"Well Crap, I don't know." He paused, "Maybe we should just go to bed."

Carter's eyes widened. He caught her expression.

"To sleep Carter, to sleep."

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The next morning was sunny, but cold. Sam and Jack were in each others arms. Sam woke first. She put her forehead up to Jack's.

"Jack"

His eyes opened and he jumped slightly. "Extreme close up."

She smiled. "Well, last night was…interesting." She said, pulling back.

"Yes, yes it was." He said, propping himself up on his elbow.

"So, is that a line we plan on crossing again; or was it a one time deal" Sam asked.

"That is up to you."

"Me?"

"Yes, I have already realized what I want." He grinned with satisfaction.

"Obviously" She shook her head. "So does this mean that you don't think we will be rescued?"

"I still like to believe we will be rescued. I haven't completely lost hope, but I am also trying to be realistic." Jack said, rolling onto his back.

"We have been here nearly three months now." Sam said.

"I know" He said "This place is looking more and more like home all the time."

"We may have to make it home. I am starting to realize that possibility now." Sam said, rolling over onto her back.

"I can think of no better person to be stranded with." Jack said.

Sam smiled. It had been nice to 'play house' with the man she loved. "So now what?" She said, focusing on a spot on the top of the tent.

"Now we do our best to be happy with what we have got. We may never get home." He paused, "Despite the fact that we are stranded light years from home, I am satisfied with the way things have turned out." Jack said, sitting up.

Sam smiled and nodded.

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Sam was yelling in her sleep. "No, you can't, they will find us! Martouf!" She was writhing next to Jack in her sleep. Anguish filled her features. She rolled towards him and grabbed his sleeve.

"Samantha" Jack said sternly. "Samantha" he repeated.

She sat straight up and opened her eyes. She was short of breath. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She looked down at him. "Sorry sir," she said, trying to catch her breath.

He sat up and put his hand on the small of her back. She stiffened to his touch. He took his hand away and turned Sam to face him. "Are you okay?"

Sam put her hands over her face.

"C'mere" he said as she leaned into him, her face against his neck. He felt her face moist with tears. His heart sank. He hated it when she cried.

"Bad dreams?" He asked softly.

"Bad Jolinar memories." She said into his neck.

He patted her back. "I have memories like that too, only they are mine."

She lifted her head from his neck. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tightly. He returned the embrace and lowered them to the ground.

"Let's try to get some more sleep shall we?" Jack said.

Sam nodded. She felt the memories start to fade as she thought of new memories. Her own memories. She lay on his chest, felt the even rhythm of his breathing.

"Jack"

"Yeah"

"Tell me about Charlie."

She felt him take a deep breath and then let it out into a sigh.

"He loved to play just about anything. And he was stubborn, like me I guess."

Jack continued on about Charlie, about Sarah, about his life before the stargate. Sam just listened. She had grabbed a hold of his hand, when he was talking about Charlie and hadn't let go. He told her about some of his black ops missions; the ones that weren't 'classified', the friends he had lost; including Kowalski.

"Do you still love her?" Sam asked about Sarah.

"Yes" he said simply. "But I always will to some extent."

"She was your wife. I wouldn't expect you to feel any different."

He really hadn't talked to Sarah in years. Not since the alien impersonated him and they met up at the hospital. He had talked to her father a few times. Her dad said that she was going to sell the house and leave town. Jack had told him to wish her well for him.

"It just can't work with us. There is too much pain there. When I see her, I think of Charlie. I just can't…" He paused. "That day plays over and over in my head."

Sam lifted her head to look at him. She put her face close to his, cheek to cheek. She rolled him onto his side and he put his head in her chest. She held him tightly. He had not disclosed this much to one person in a very long time. They slowly drifted off to sleep in each other's arms.

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Sam awoke with the morning sunlight. She was spooned up to Jack with her arm draped over him. She rolled onto her back, and stroked his back with her hand. He stirred. "Good morning Jack"

He groaned and turned over onto his back. His eyes still closed, "Morning already?"

They lay side by side there for a moment before sitting up.

"How are you feeling this morning?" Sam asked.

"Pretty good, and you?"

"Good"

"Carter"

"Yes"

"Thanks for last night. I…"

Sam grabbed his hand and squeezed. She nodded, looking into his brown eyes. He brought his hand to her face and stroked it lightly.

"You are so beautiful"

Sam blushed, "Thanks, you are pretty cute yourself."

Jack smiled. "This is always good way to wake up."

A grin spread across Sam's face. "C'mon, let's get the day started."

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	4. Chapter 4

After almost two months of searching, the Tok'ra recalled Jacob and his ship. He dropped Daniel and Teal'c at the Alpha site and headed to wherever the Tok'ra were hiding.

Upon returning to the SGC, General Hammond told Daniel and Teal'c that they needed some time off. He also told them that the Prometheus would probably be back in a month or so. But Hammond had also said that the President had to okay the use of the ship for the search.

"I will certainly encourage the search." Hammond said, sitting at the head of the briefing room table.

"Thank you General." Daniel said.

"The President had ordered that we attempt to set up the supply site again."

"I was wondering how long it would take before they got that project running again." Daniel said. The project had been delayed after Sam and Jack disappeared.

"The supplies are ready; we just have to re assign some personnel." Hammond said, rising from his seat and stepping over to the observation window.

"General, will you inform us when the President has made his decision?" Teal'c asked.

Hammond nodded. "Yes son, I will."

"Thank you General."

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The weather had been so strange lately. It would get into the nineties during the day and drop to just above freezing some nights. It had not rained for days, but it was looking overcast. So Sam had set up the tarps and buckets to catch the rain water. They had both been out in the hot sun working on separate projects when it started to sprinkle.

Sam ran inside the cave and shortly came back out in a tank top, boxer shorts, carrying a bar of soap. She was even barefoot. Jack smiled and considered joining her when the rain began to pick up. He jumped up and stripped down to a t-shirt and boxers. He threw his clothes inside the cave so they would stay dry. Not that he really wanted to put the sweaty clothes back on again. It started to pour. Sam yelped with delight and began soaping herself. Jack walked over to her. She was soaked. Her wet clothing clung to her body as she pulled her tank top up just enough to reveal her stomach. She soaped that and was trying to reach her back when Jack stepped in. He took the bar of soap from her. She pulled up her shirt and he soaped her back. Jack finished soaping her and then turned the bar on himself. She rinsed off and instructed him to remove his shirt. She lathered his back and returned the bar to his hand. She began twirling and dancing.

Jack finished soaping and called to her. "Carter"

She turned to look at him, hair slicked back; beautiful face dripping with moisture. It was the first thing either of them had said since the rain had started. He moved towards her, she had stopped dancing. The wet clothing revealed the shape and curves of her body. They clung to her like a second skin. She closed the gap between them and locked her lips with his. Jack did not pull back. They stood in each other's arms, kissing feverishly. The rain began to let up slightly. Jack pulled away first. "Wow" Was all he could muster.

Sam smiled. "C'mon. Let's go get dried off." She grabbed his hand and led him to the cave.

Jack started a fire while Sam changed into dry clothes. As soon as the fire was going, he went to change. When he emerged from the tent, Sam was preparing their meal. The sun was beginning to set, and the rain had stopped. The temperature was dropping; he hoped that all this moisture wouldn't freeze.

"The weather is crazy here." He said, sitting down in front of the fire. Sam set a MRE in front of him.

"It may have something to do with the size of the planet, the atmosphere, the velocity and shape of its orbit around the suns." She stopped and looked over at him. He was staring at her; she smiled. "I just like saying a bunch of technical crap to see the look on your face."

"I knew it!" He exclaimed, grinning.

"Although the days here do seem to be longer than on earth. Even with all the time changes."

They had adjusted their watches to a time relative to the planet, but kept earth time also to judge earth days. When they were on missions they always tried to visit planets in the 'day hours'. They had to adjust their departure times accordingly on several occasions.

"Jack"

"Yes Samantha"

"I miss Daniel and Teal'c"

"I know me too."

"We're family. Most people have no idea the things we have been through together. We have all been imprisoned, tortured, and mind stamped. Daniel has died, ascended, and come back to life. You and Teal'c have also died and been brought back by a sarcoughagus." She took a breath before continuing, "When Daniel ascended, I felt as though someone had cut out a part of me. I had this huge void to fill and never did until he returned to us."

"I know" Jack said simply. "I wasn't as compassionate with you as I should've been at the time, and I am sorry. But you know me; I am not really good with emotions." He paused, "Besides, I already had these feelings for you that I wasn't supposed to have. I wanted to badly just to hold you every time you were upset, but I couldn't"

He looked up at her and she held his gaze. "I understand now, but at the time I thought you were being an ass." She said smiling.

"Carter, I am an ass." He said taking a bite of his meal.

She smiled and began to eat her meal.

"Daniel and T are my family too; we're brothers as Teal'c would say." Jack said.

"Yeah, they're like extra brothers for me. Teal'c the much older big brother; Daniel the younger intellectual brother."

"You mean the geek." Jack said grinning.

Sam slugged him playfully in the arm. He got a mock hurt expression on his face and rubbed his shoulder.

"Who do you think they have running things while you're away?" Sam asked.

"I would say they probably roped Hammond into it."

She nodded, finishing up her meal. The temperature was dropping again. She was able to see her breath when they talked. She scooted closer to the fire and wrapped a thermal blanket around herself. Jack scooted closer to her and brought his blanket around both of them. He put his arm around Sam and pulled her to him. They sat and watched the flames flicker and pop in front of them. The light danced along the cave walls, casting shadows. Jack squeezed Sam's shoulder and nodded towards the tent. She nodded in agreement and got up from her place next him. They made sure everything was in place for the night and put out the fire.

They both headed for the tent and crawled into the sleeping bags. She curled up next him, lying on his shoulder in his arms. He pulled the thermal blankets over them.

"Good night Sam."

"Good night Jack"

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Daniel unlocked Sam's front door and walked in. It looked exactly as Sam had left it. Daniel had been getting Sam and Jack's mail. They had been gone for nearly three months. He couldn't believe it had been that long since he had seen or talked to either of them. Daniel laid the mail on the kitchen island. The thought occurred to him that Sam may never return to her house.

The week they returned, Daniel and Teal'c cleaned out both Sam and Jack's perishable foods. Neither had had much; Jack's was mostly beer. Daniel had called to stop the newspaper delivery earlier in the day. He had also struggled with the decision to shut off all unnecessary utilities. Teal'c had convinced him that it would be for the best.

Daniel sat down on the couch and looked up at the pictures on the mantel. Pictures of Sam and her family; one of SG1; and Cassie, Janet, and Sam together. Daniel glanced over at the desk and noticed the picture of Sam and Pete.

Pete had called the SGC and Daniel several times after not being able to reach Sam. Daniel had to tell him every time that Sam was on a mission and could not be reached. Finally after two months, Daniel called Pete and told him that the Air Force had declared Sam MIA.

Daniel could remember the silence that had followed his statement. Pete had asked if Sam was MIA on Earth. Daniel said, "It is classified. I am sorry."

"Then there's nothing I can do?" Pete had asked.

"No, I am sorry."

And with that, Pete had hung up. Daniel hadn't heard anything since then. He had assured Pete that if Sam returned, Pete would be contacted as soon as it was cleared.

Daniel's cell phone began to ring. He looked at the caller ID and answered. "Hey Teal'c."

"Daniel Jackson, I have finished cutting the grass at O'Neill's home."

"Okay. Did you want to go get something to eat?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, I am in need of sustenance."

"Okay, I will come and get you. See you in a few."

Daniel shut his phone and rose from the couch. When he reached the door, he took one final look over the house before stepping out onto the porch; locking the door behind him.

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"Jack, do you remember when the other Carter, Dr. Carter came through the mirror?"

"Yeah, how could I forget the time in my life when there were two Carters?" He smiled.

"Daniel told me about the alternative reality he went to through the mirror the first time. He told me that Sam Carter and Jack O'Neill were engaged." She paused, "And the Carter from the alternate reality that came through the mirror was married to Jack O'Neill." She looked up at him. "Does that tell us anything?"

"It tells us that in both realities, it was Doctor Carter not Major or Colonel Carter."

Sam remembered when Dr. Carter had at first criticized her for joining the military. But she later realized why it was important for there to be a Major Carter instead of just a Dr. Carter.

"I know, but maybe this was inevitable. Maybe we were meant to be even though in this life we are forbidden to be."

Jack nodded. "It sucks" He said simply.

"Yeah, it really does. But the rules are the there for a reason."

"We have broken the rules before."

"Yes, I guess we have"

"We have both defied direct orders."

"That too"

"But this is court marshal material." Jack said.

Sam nodded. "Yes, definitely"

"So if we were to ever get rescued…" Sam trailed off.

"Things would get sticky." Jack said

"Do you think they will ever find us?"

Jack sighed. "I don't know. Sometimes I hope that they will come, but when I am lying with you; those cares escape me."

Sam blushed. He had actually managed to say something beautiful.

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"This is the forty fifth planet we've searched between Jacob and the Prometheus." Daniel said pacing on the bridge of the large ship.

"Indeed. I would hope that this time, we will be successful in finding Colonel Carter and General O'Neill." Teal'c said calmly.

"I hope so. We don't have too many more options." Daniel paused, "How long before we reach the planet?" Daniel asked one of the technicians.

"Within the hour sir."

"Good"

Teal'c nodded.

The Prometheus had been traveling from planet to planet searching for the pair. They had already searched many planets. A few that did not have an operational gate. Time was running short. The Tok'ra had already recalled Jacob and the president was about to give up the search. But Daniel and Teal'c were persistent. They believed that Jack and Sam were out there somewhere and that if they kept looking they would find them. Hammond had granted Daniel and Teal'c's request for a leave from their normal SG duties to continue the search. Daniel was determined that they would find them. Although he was becoming weary. The frustration of so many negatives was getting to him.

"Doctor Jackson" The technician interrupted his thoughts.

"Yes?"

"We are in orbit around the planet."

"Good"

"We are scanning the surface for any signals." The technician pressed a few buttons. "General O'Neill, Colonel Carter please respond."

They heard nothing at first, but then the crackling of a radio and O'Neill's voice.

Daniel smiled wider than he had in months. They had found them.

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Waking up on the planet O'Neill had named "Homer" every morning was becoming routine. They carried on as if this was the way life was to be. They had found an alternative food source (small animals and fish from the lake). A little over four months had passed here on "Homer". Their relationship had changed and grown into something more than friendship. The hope of rescue had started to fade.

"Good morning Samantha." Jack came up behind her and hugged her tightly. She had gotten up before he had and already taken a 'bath'.

"Good morning" she said laying her head back against his body. She turned her head and kissed his neck. He sighed. The air had slowly begun to warm as the twin suns climbed higher in the sky. There were a few clouds in the sky. Jack wondered if it might rain today.

Suddenly the radio crackled. Sam had just turned it on this morning to see if the battery still worked.

"General O'Neill, Colonel Carter please respond." The radio crackled. "Again, I repeat, General O'Neill, Colonel Carter please respond."

O'Neill sprang to life and scooped up the radio. "This is O'Neill."

"Sir it is good to hear from you."

"Where have you guys been?"

"It took us a while to find you. We are in orbit above the planet. Awaiting further instructions sir."

Affirmative, we will send up a flare to guide you in."

"Thank you sir."

"Thank you. O'Neill out."

"Carter, we're going home."

Daniel and Teal'c had both accompanied SG 3 and 6 to the planet to retrieve their friends. Daniel said something happened that caused the wormhole to shift and loose its lock. It was a glitch of some kind. Every time they dialed up after that, it worked correctly.

"We missed you guys." Daniel said walking briskly towards them.

"Indeed" Teal'c said following in a slower pace.

"We missed you guys too." Carter said hugging Daniel and Teal'c.

"How exactly did you find us?" Jack asked, slapping Daniel's back and giving him a hug.

"We enlisted the help of several friends. Eventually between the Tok'ra and the crew of the Prometheus, we found you."

"It's nice to know that we have some friends out there." Jack said smiling.

"Sam your dad was helping with the search, but the Tok'ra recalled him about a month ago." Daniel said.

"I am surprised they let you have him for that long." Jack said.

Daniel nodded, "Well, lets get you guys home."

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The ride home was long but at least they were headed home. O'Neill was being debriefed while she, Daniel and Teal'c got reacquainted.

"So Daniel, anything new happen while we were gone?" Sam asked.

"No, not particularly." He said pushing his glasses up on his nose. "What about you? It must have been exciting having to fend for yourselves on that planet all the time."

"Oh yeah right, three months without at decent shower is so exciting."

"You've been with Jack too long." Daniel said.

She blushed; she didn't mean to take the comment as embarrassment it just happened. Daniel didn't seem to notice, although Teal'c raised an eyebrow.

"Is that the first order of business?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, definitely." She said, "I feel like I could stand under the shower for hours."

"Uh, you're hair is longer." Daniel said, trying to make conversation.

Sam nodded. "It's driving me crazy! I am going to get it cut ASAP."

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	5. Chapter 5

Thanks so much for your reviews. They are appreciated! Here's chapter 5. Hope you are all enjoying the story.

They arrived home late in the day, and went straight to a debriefing with General Hammond. It was late after the debriefing and she decided she would just stay at the SGC.

She hadn't had a real shower in months. She turned on the hot water and let it hit her face. She scrubbed her hair, washing it at least twice. Dumping almost half a bottle of conditioner on her hair, she stood for what seemed like an hour under the warm water. It had been a long day. Coming back to the base was a little strange after being away for over three months. Everything looked the same, the same smells, and noises. She knew the corridors like the back of her hand. She had often run through them in her mind to help her sleep at night when they were stranded.

They had crossed the line, she thought. Not badly, but bad enough. As the water fell over her face, she thought of what to do. The General would obviously be busy getting caught up the next day or so. She might get to see him, but they needed to figure out what was to happen next. Things could not go on; they couldn't go back to 'normal'. Too much had happened. They had allowed themselves to cross the line; had let their guard down.

They had thought there would be no rescue, that they would live out the rest of their days on that planet. _Jack had said things would be sticky_, she thought. _He was right._

She shut the shower off and got dried off. She slipped into some clean clothes from her locker. She decided that she would just stay at the base. Sam decided that she would go tell Jack that she was staying at the base; sneak a chance to speak with him.

She knocked on his door.

"Come in"

She opened the door to find General Hammond there with O'Neill.

"Hello Colonel" Hammond said.

"Hello General." She said smiling. She looked over at O'Neill. He smiled at her. "I am going to stay on the base tonight sir, so if I am needed for anything, let me know."

"Okay Carter, I'll be around here too. Thanks."

She felt awkward. "Nice to see you General, goodnight Sirs."

"Good to have you back Colonel."

"Goodnight Carter."

She nodded and left the room.

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_A shower finally,_ he thought. _A real shower_. By the time O'Neill got to the lockeroom for a shower, it was deserted. And it was very late. General Hammond had just retired to the VIP quarters for the night. He would be leaving tomorrow. O'Neill turned the water on and stepped in. He felt three months of grim wash away. They had kept as clean as they could, enough to not smell bad. But nothing compared to the hot shower he was currently enjoying. The water they cleaned up with was never hot, maybe warm if they left it in the sun. They had kept water in whatever they could. Any empty, non toxic containers had become water carriers.

O'Neill scrubbed the shampoo into his head with his fingers. He washed his hair a few times before just standing with his face in the water stream. Just then, he heard someone enter the shower room.

"Sir?" He heard a female voice ask; Carter's voice.

"Carter?" O'Neill asked turning to look in the direction of the voice. Carter walked up to the stall.

"Er, sorry sir." She said, face flushed.

"Carter, what are you doing?" He said, shutting off the water and grabbing his towel.

She shrugged, "Couldn't sleep, tried to find you, looked for you all over before coming here."

O'Neill gave her an irritated look. "Well you've found me."

Carter turned away, still blushing. "I'll leave sir, I am sorry." She began to leave.

"Carter, wait" He said wrapping a towel around his waist. He opened the shower door and stepped out. She turned to look at him. O'Neill suddenly felt self conscious.

"Are you going to tell me what you want or are you just going to gawk at me?" He asked, again slightly irritated.

She swallowed visibly and bit her lip. She wanted so badly for him to take her in his arms and hold her tightly. Anything but the look he was giving her. The look that says 'I am still your CO and we're back to the rules.'

"Sir, I just wondered…" She trailed off. She slowly regained her composure. "Wondered when the debriefing was to be for this last mission?"

He sighed, obviously knowing her real reason for coming to find him. He shook his head. "Maybe sometime tomorrow." He smirked, "But as you can see I don't really have my planner with me at the moment."

She smiled and nodded.

O'Neill moved towards his locker and opened it. He grabbed an extra towel and began drying himself off. She had just watched him. He finished and pulled a clean t-shirt out and put it on. He looked up at her. She was in a haze, grinning.

"What?" O'Neill asked.

Carter snapped to attention. "Sorry sir, I…I…" She stammered, "Should get going."

"Yeah, I think that would be a good idea."

She turned and hurried out the door. He grabbed the rest of his clothes and pulled them on. _I am glad there are no cameras in here_, he thought as he collected his things. He headed out the door and to his quarters.

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She was exhausted, but her mind would not let her sleep. She lay awake for hours until her body finally won. She had been asleep for only an hour when her alarm clock went off. She lifted her head from the pillow and reached over to shut it off.

"Damn"

She rolled over and sat up. "Morning already"

She got up and dressed. She was leaving her quarters when she saw Daniel coming towards her.

"Hey Sam, I was just coming to find you."

"Well, you've found me" she said wryly.

"Yeah, I was wondering if you wanted to get some breakfast."

"Sure" Sam said, smiling.

"Alright"

When they got to the mess hall, Teal'c was already there.

"Morning Teal'c" Sam said as she sat her food tray down and took a seat.

"Good morning to you Colonel Carter."

"Where's Jack this morning?" Daniel asked.

"O'Neill said something about meetings all day today." Teal'c said.

"Oh, that sucks" Daniel said, taking a bite of his breakfast.

Sam nodded. She guessed that she wouldn't be seeing him at all today. _That's okay,_ she thought, _I have plenty of things to do in my lab_.

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"I think I've debriefed the whole base today." O'Neill said as he gathered the papers in front of him. He had played 'catch up' with almost every SG team on their current missions and missions of importance that he had missed.

General Hammond shook his head and smiled, "I am sure it seems like it."

They were alone in the briefing room, SG 12 had just been dismissed and it was late afternoon. They hadn't had a break for lunch so Hammond and O'Neill went to the mess hall and reminisced about old times. They finished their meals and headed back to Jack's office.

"Jack, how is the adjustment back to 'normal life' going?" Hammond asked.

"Well, it's only been two days and everything is already crazy here." O'Neill said, throwing his hands up.

Hammond nodded, "I meant personally Jack."

O'Neill raised an eyebrow. Hammond gestured towards the switch for the camera. O'Neill casually flipped it off and sighed. "Things are okay."

Hammond laced his fingers in his lap and leaned back in his chair.

O'Neill looked down at his desk before continuing. "George, I've got something to say." His gaze focused on his name plate. Just as he was about to continue, someone knocked. O'Neill looked up at the door.

"Come"

It was Carter. "Sorry if I am interrupting, sir." She said, "But I got some more reports done." She pulled a few files from the stack pressed to her chest. She set them down on the corner of his desk.

He nodded, "Good work Carter, thanks."

She nodded and then spoke to Hammond. "I thought you were leaving this morning?"

The General smiled. "I got caught up in the familiar chaos around here."

"Yes sir" Carter smiled and turned to leave.

"Thanks again Carter." O'Neill said giving her a quick smile. Their eyes locked. Hammond could feel the heat from where he was sitting. He smiled.

Carter turned away and left, closing the door quietly behind her.

"I think I know what you are going to say Jack."

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Sam was back at home in her own bed for the first time in months. It was so soft, comfortable, but empty. She had not slept well the days they had been back. She had grown accustomed to having someone to sleep with for over four months. Cassie would be coming home in a couple of days. It would be nice to have her back home. Sam had called her on the telephone earlier in the day. Cassie told Sam that she would be taking a bus home in a few days.

Cassie went to stay with her 'grandparents' when Sam didn't return from the mission. Cassie didn't want to be alone and decided to go visit the people she had called her grandparents the last couple of years. Cassie got scared when two months had passed with no sign of them. Daniel had called her to keep her informed as much as he could divulge over the phone. When Sam called Cassie to tell her they were back, Cassie almost couldn't believe it was Sam. She had almost given up hope. After losing Janet, she felt like she was cursed. That anyone she got close to would die or disappear. But Sam had reassured her that it was going to be okay.

Sam had thought about Cassie countless time while stranded. She kept saying to herself that she had to get home to Cassie. That Cassie was depending on her. Sam attempted to get comfortable. She laid there with her eyes closed but awake, thinking until her alarm went off the next morning.

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"Sam you look terrible." Daniel said.

"Thanks a lot Daniel."

"Sorry. Have you been sleeping well?"

"No, not really."

"That would explain it." Daniel paused before continuing. "Did something happen while you were on the planet?"

"What do you mean?"

He sighed, trying to be delicate. "Did something happen with Jack?"

"Daniel"

"Sam"

"Not that it is anybody's business, but no."

"Nothing at all?" Daniel asked in disbelief.

Sam shot him a look that said 'don't go there, not here'

"Oh. Have you guys talked since you've been back?"

"Not really."

"Okay."

"We haven't exactly had much time alone."

Yeah, the last couple of days have been crazy around here." He paused, "Maybe you need some time off" Daniel suggested.

She looked at him and rolled her eyes. "Daniel, I have had four months off."

"No you spent four months trying to survive and still I am sure you followed some military guidelines."

Sam blushed. "Some" she said.

Daniel's eyebrows rose. "Okay" He continued, "Time off may give you two some time to work through things." He paused, "Now that you are home and back to all this." He said arms in an open wide gesture.

"Yeah, well I don't think that is going to solve things. But I will go talk to him right now if that will make you happy."

"Sure, I just want things to be okay Sam."

"I know Daniel, I know."

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Jack put his spoon down and scrubbed the back of his head with his fingers. He was exhausted.

Teal'c raised and eyebrow. "Is there something troubling you O'Neill?"

Jack looked up at him briefly before returning his gaze to his cereal. He hadn't had cereal in over three months. It was strange how it could taste so good.

"Just trying to adjust." O'Neill said flatly. _Never give too much away_ _O'Neill,_ he thought. But this was Teal'c. He always saw through the bravado.

Teal'c took a bite of his breakfast. He set his spoon down on the table. "Colonel Carter?"

O'Neill met his gaze and nodded. He had just once again admitted he had feelings for Carter with Teal'c present. Some how he thought that Teal'c knew what had went on while they were on that planet. Teal'c always was a good judge of unspoken language. He caught most of the looks that O'Neill and Carter gave each other. There had been many instances where either O'Neill or Carter had expressed more than appropriate feelings for each other. Teal'c had heard it during the zatark testing and had seen it in Antarctica. And he could see it now.

"O'Neill. I do believe that you need to discuss this with Colonel Carter." Teal'c said.

O'Neill shook his head. "I don't know when, they've got me busy playing 'catch up'."

Teal'c was stoic as usual. "Perhaps you should facilitate a meeting outside of the SGC."

O'Neill tapped his spoon on the table, "Right" he said simply. "Easier said than done."

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Someone was knocking softly at his office door. "Come in." He said without looking up. She slipped in and shut the door.

"Sir"

His head snapped up from the file he was reading. "Carter." He took a long look at her. She looked terrible. Well, beautiful, but terrible. "What's up?"

"I think we need to talk," She paused, "About the mission."

"Not right now Carter. Not here."

She nodded. They sat in silence for a bit before he spoke up. "Carter are you feeling okay?"

"I am just not sleeping well."

"Me either." He paused, "You need rest."

"I know, it is hard to sleep…alone." She quickly added, "My house is so empty without Cassie there."

"I understand." He said quietly. "When does Cassie come back?"

"Not for a couple days yet."

"Why don't you try to rest here on base for a while? It may help to have people around."

"Maybe I will try that."

"That's an order colonel."

She smiled and left the room. He knew what she was feeling. He wasn't sleeping well either. He would check on her later to see if she had gotten some rest.

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She heard knocking at the door to her quarters. "Come in."

It was the general. "How are you doing Carter?" He said as he shut the door.

"Better, I got a few minutes rest anyway." She said smiling.

"Is there sometime we could talk in private?" He asked

"Sure, tonight, my house for dinner sound ok?"

"Yep"

"Good, I will see you at 1500 hours then."

"Yep"

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Carter pulled up to her house around 1430 hours. There was someone sitting on her front step. It was Pete. She sighed deeply as she parked and turned off her car. He looked up and smiled at her. She smiled back. As she approached him he stood up. "Hello Sam."

"Hi"

"They wouldn't tell me specifics, just that you were MIA." Pete said, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"They can be stingy with information."

"I was worried about you Sam. I had a lot of time to think." He moved closer to her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"About?" She played dumb.

"About us." He smiled.

"Oh" She said simply, averting her gaze,

He frowned slightly, "What's up?"

She sat down on the step; he sat down next to her. She told him what had happened and finally, who she was stranded with. Pete fell silent. He was looking at his feet. Just then she could see Jack driving up the street. He apparently saw them because he slowed down, but did not stop. He just drove by. For an instant she made eye contact with him. That and Pete being there told him all he needed to know. Sam was glad that Pete had been looking down and had not seen Jack.

"So what does this mean?" Pete asked carefully, not really wanting an answer. But he was going to get one.

Sam took a deep breath. "It means that you were right." She said painfully.

"I am sorry." She said simply.

"Sorry" he repeated quietly. He rose from his position next to her. "Well, I know that I don't have to transfer now."

She sat on her step in a haze when Jack pulled up. He got out and walked up to her position. She didn't move. He knelt down in front of her. She leaned forward into him, resting her head on his shoulder. He put his arms around her and held her. Silent tears streamed down her cheeks. They sat together for several moments before he brought them both to their feet and she opened the door. She slowly sat down on the couch. He sat next to her, giving her some space. They sat in silence. Then she spoke. "Broke his heart. I really did not want it to end like this. It's all my fault. Why can't I have normal relationships?" She buried her face in her hands. He patted her back softly. "I am sorry." She said through her hands.

"Don't be."

"I feel like I have screwed everything up."

"Carter, everything is always screwed up." He said smiling. "No more I'm sorrys. Okay?" He said bringing her chin up with his finger.

"Okay" She said softly.

"I didn't hear you, what?"

"Okay" She said firmly this time.

"Alright, I'm starved. What do you want for dinner? Its on me."

They had pizza and she had changed into comfortable clothes to watch movies and eat popcorn. They cuddled on the couch until she fell asleep in his arms. He laid her gently down, shut the tv off, and covered her with a blanket. Just as he was going to leave, she woke up.

"Please don't leave."

"Sam'

"I know, just stay with me…and sleep, nothing else."

He thought it over for a minute. Against his better judgment, he nodded. She slowly rose from the couch and took his hand. She led him towards the bedroom. She had started to gather up some extra blankets and her pillow. "What are you doing?"

"I am going to sleep in Cassie's bed. You can have my bed." She said, wrapping her arms around the bundle of blankets.

"It's your bed; you are going to sleep in it."

"But…" Before she could finish, he put a finger to her lips. Jack took the blankets from her and set them in a chair. He led her over to the bed and tucked her in. He went over to the other side of the bed, grabbed a blanket and lay on top of the covers next to her. She smiled and snuggled up to him. It only took them both a few minutes to fall fast asleep.

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	6. Chapter 6

Reviews appreciated! Thanks.

The Next morning Jack ate a quick breakfast and went home to shower and get dressed. Sam got ready and went into work like she normally would. She drove to the mountain, rode the elevator down deep and walked to her lab. She felt better than she had in days. She had begun working on some paperwork when Daniel came in.

"Morning Sam" Daniel said cheerfully.

"Morning Daniel"

"Sam, you must've gotten some rest, you look like you feel better today."

"Yeah, much better" she said smiling.

"Are you ready for the debriefing today?"

"Yeah, I just got finished with the paperwork." She picked up a folder and the 'mission' report. Even though the man that presides over debriefings was in this instance 'part of the team' again. It still needed to be done.

"How did the meeting with the Tok'ra go?"

"Good, after we figured out what happened; or that you hadn't made it to the planet." Daniel said. "We contacted your dad and he got the Tok'ra to lend him a ship to help us search for you."

"Daniel, was there ever a time that you thought you would not find us?"

"Some of the others suggested that maybe you and Jack went through, but never rematerialized. That you were both dead." He said trailing off.

"Did you?"

He refocused, "No. And I am sorry that we didn't figure things out sooner. You are kind of the brains when it comes to the gate."

She smiled, "Yeah, I guess so."

"Well, I should go do something constructive before the debriefing."

"See you in a bit"

"Yes"

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"General if that is all I would like to speak to you for a moment in your office." Carter said as she collected her report.

"Sure" He said smiling, "Meet you there in a few"

She nodded. The debriefing had gone well. Daniel, Teal'c, and SG 3 went over the original mission and Carter pretty much handled the alternative. She kept it short, and to the point. She did not need anyone getting any ideas. She gathered up her things and headed to the door to the General's office. He had, she guessed, stopped the cameras. She walked in and shut the door tightly behind her.

"Sir"

"Yes Carter"

"Was that report adequate sir?"

"More than adequate Colonel"

"Thank you sir. Permission to speak freely."

"Granted"

"I did my best not to include any unnecessary information."

"Like the fact that we 'broke the rules'"

"Not exactly broke them, bent them a little." She paused, "I am feeling much better today."

"Me too"

"General, I don't know what to do about this situation. I honestly began to believe that they would not find us."

"We don't have to bring it to work."

"That will be hard"

"Carter I feel like we are being punished for being human. If they wanted to really look at the situation, I am biased with all of SG 1."

She had thought about his strong connection with every member of SG 1, not just her.

"Just because the boys and I are not 'romantically involved' doesn't mean that I wouldn't do just about anything for them. I have done things to compromise missions for the sake of my team members. That is why I don't know if I am the best guy for this job. I do my best to make good and reasonable decisions so people don't get hurt or killed. But it does happen. I am technically no longer a part of your team. And it's beyond me what the difference is now or if we become more involved. Acting on our feelings will not change that." He finished, took a deep breath, and sat back in his chair.

That was the most she thought she had ever heard him speak. "Wow" was all she could muster.

He smiled, "Wow? That's it? I figured you would have some logical reply."

She shook her head. "I don't know what to follow that up with."

"How about we meet at your place at 1500 hours?"

She smiled and nodded, "Okay" She wasn't sure what she was getting herself into, but right at this moment, she didn't care.

The night was spent again watching movies and eating in. Jack brought clothes to sleep in this time. He knew that she wasn't going to let him leave. They were just finishing up a movie when the doorbell rang. It was Daniel.

"Hey there Danny boy"

"Jack, hi." He said somewhat confused. Slowly he figured it out. "Oh, oh. Sorry, am I interrupting anything?"

"No Daniel, come in"

"I just came to see how Sam was doing. But I can see she is good."

"Daniel, we are just watching movies."

"Yeah, c'mon and join us. We were just going to start a new one. We get to watch the one I picked out next." Jack said motioning for Daniel to sit.

"Are you guys sure about this?"

"We will ask you to leave if we don't want you around." Jack remarked, grinning.

"Uh, okay"

Sam sat in the chair next to the couch, giving the boys some room.

"So…" Daniel said.

"Ready to start the movie?" Sam asked as relief swept over Daniel's face.

"Yes" Daniel and Jack said simultaneously.

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"Thanks Daniel" Sam said hugging him.

"No problem" Daniel said turning to leave.

She shut the door and locked it behind him. Jack was stretched out on the couch watching a hockey game. He could always find one TV. She walked into the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea. She returned to the living room to find that he had changed the science channel. She sat down on the floor in front of the couch so she could put her cup on the coffee table. He rolled over onto his side and started massaging her neck. It felt good.

"Jack"

"Yeah"

"Never mind"

"What?"

She sighed and tilted her head back to look up at him. "Do you really think that we can make this work?"

"We should give it a try"

She smiled. He moved closer and kissed her lips. He hadn't kissed her since they had been back.

She turned herself to face him and climbed on the couch with him. He made room for her and wrapped his arms around her. She put her head on his chest. She was still tired from not getting much sleep. She relaxed into him and was soon asleep. He stroked her hair and softly rubbed her back. He was soon asleep too.

"Good Morning Sam" Jack said as he kissed her on the cheek. Sometime during the night they had migrated to the bed.

"Good morning Jack"

"Down time is great. I decided to take the day off too. They will call me if they need me."

"I guess you can do that." she said smiling.

"Yes, the perks of being in charge." Jack said with a grin.

She rolled to face him "I am going to go hop in the shower. I will be back in a few."

He nodded. "I think I will take one too." They got up and headed for the showers.

He was the first one back in. She returned to the room shortly after he did and slid under the covers beside him. It was going to be a cold day out so staying in bed the whole day sounded good to both of them. Jack turned to face her. She leaned into him and kissed him gently on the lips. Her hair was still damp and warm. She kissed him again, this time forcefully. He rolled over on top of her, lips and bodies pressed together. He kissed her neck and caressed her soft skin with his hands. She had just slid her hands under his shirt when their cell phones rang simultaneously. They both knew what that meant.

Jack dropped his head into her chest. "Damn, perfect timing" he grumbled.

Sam reached for her phone and grabbed his to shut it off. He was glad she was thinking straight.

"Yes, this is Carter. Yes, ok I will be right there." She ended the connection. "Something is up at SGC, you need to call"

"Figures"

She smiled, "We will have time for this later." She kissed him and he rolled onto his back. He pushed speed dial. "This is O'Neill"


	7. Chapter 7

They reported for duty in separate cars of course, but were there at the same time. Usually this was their day off. But something big was going on. They rode the elevator down in silence. Each of them clearing their minds and getting into 'work mode'. The doors opened and they were ready to go. They had agreed on some ground rules if this was going to work. Number one; no displays of affection, besides a hug, at work. Number two; Work is work, home is home. They went directly to the debriefing room where Teal'c, Daniel, and SG3 were waiting.

One of the members of SG 3 spoke up. "Sir, we have a problem at the new off world base."

"They haven't reported in for hours. They have missed the last three communications." Another spoke up.

"Did you send a MALP?"

"No sir, we weren't sure what the best course of action would be."

Jack thought for a minute, "Let's send a MALP through first and then SG 1 and 3 will go through. I will also round up SG 6 to be ready. They are on duty today."

"Yes sir"

"Let's move out. Prepare to leave in one hour. "Any questions?"

No objections came, "Dismissed"

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O'Neill headed towards his office and SG 1 headed off to the locker rooms.

"Sam, what do you think happened?" Daniel asked.

"I don't know Daniel. No one was supposed to know about the base. Unless the Tokra have a traitor in their midst."

"Or us" Daniel replied.

She nodded. They packed up the gear and headed for the gate room.

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"I want to see team leaders over here for a minute." O'Neill said motioning to the leaders of SG1, 3, and 6.

"I want you to report in when you get there and again in one hour. I want to know what's going on before I let you stay too long."

"Yes sir" they said in unison

"Alright, send the MALP through."

The scene out side the gate was deserted. Even when the camera was rotated, nothing looked out of the ordinary. No sign of a battle or any hostiles.

"I've got a bad feeling about this. Move out, but be careful and stay sharp."

The teams proceeded through the gate, SG 1 being the last ones through.

"Good Luck" O'Neill said raising a hand to them.

"We will be careful." Daniel said. Carter and Teal'c nodded. With that they stepped through the gate.

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As SG 1 passed through the gate the wormhole disengaged. They quickly moved away from the gate to find some cover just in case. There was no sign of anyone except the SG teams.

Carter was the highest ranking officer on this mission, so she gave the orders.

"Teams one and three will explore the base site; six will hold the gate." She waited until everyone had heard the orders and asked for questions. When there were none, she said "Alright, let's move out. Contact in one hour."

They walked cautiously to the base site; it was deserted. There was no sign of life anywhere.

"Be careful, we don't want any surprises."

She signaled SG 3 to move in and then SG 1. Teal'c, then Carter, then Daniel.

Once inside the main structure, they noticed that everything looked as though everyone had been interrupted. Books laid open computers still on, food half eaten.

"Either they left in a big hurry, or someone got to them." A member of SG 3 spoke up.

"Yes, but there do not appear to be any signs of a struggle." Teal'c said scanning the room.

"You're right Teal'c" Carter said examining the room carefully. She punched some keys on the computer keyboard. The screen saver disengaged and revealed a half written report.

"It's going to be time to report to SGC soon. We need to try to figure out what went on here before that." Carter said as she swept the room with her eyes and her P90.

"Colonel Carter, there does not appear to be any sign of attack here." Teal'c said.

"I don't see any either Teal'c"

Just then, the room was filled with light, and SG 1 and SG 3 were gone.

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"Sir, they've disappeared." Major Ellis reported. "When they didn't report in, we went to investigate and they were gone without a trace."

Looking into the monitor for the MALP, O'Neill raised his eyebrows.

"Is there any possibility that they wandered off, got lost?" O'Neill asked, almost comical, but concerned.

"I don't think so sir."

O'Neill scratched his head. "Great. I want you to search again. Look for any signs of struggle or attack. Maybe they accidentally triggered something." O'Neill said.

"Yes sir."

"And be careful" O'Neill added.

"Yes sir"

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"Whoa" Carter said

"Yeah" Daniel said

They were in a large room with SG 3 and the members of the supply base. The room was lit by lights on the sides of the room. It appeared to be a cargo hold. _There is something very familiar about this room_, Carter thought. Just then, a hologram of a small gray alien appeared.

"Asguard" Teal'c said

"Greetings" The Asguard hologram spoke.

"Ah, hello" Daniel said

"I am sure you are all wondering why you are here."

"Yes, actually" Carter said

"The planet was under surveillance by the Goa'uld. We simply removed you to keep you safe." The Asguard said.

"Isn't that breaking some treaty somewhere?" Daniel asked.

"The planet you were on falls into our protected worlds. We protect the world itself and its inhabitants." The Asguard said.

"Oh" Daniel said.

"We need to warn the others then." Carter said

"There is no need."

There was the tell tale bright flash of Asguard transportation device. Suddenly all of the SG teams were together.

"Ah, can you send us home?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, we will contact you when the threat has been dealt with."

"Er, thanks." Carter said.

"One more thing, we didn't find any evidence of civilization on this planet. Where did the inhabitants go?"

"We temporarily removed them and relocated them to a planet that had inhabitants of a similar technical age. They are a nomadic race."

"Okay" Daniel said "That makes sense, I guess."

"This world had been threatened by the Goa'uld many times. They had figured out a way to defeat our protection devices. It became difficult to protect. Since our war with the replicators has drawn so much of our fleet away, the Goa'uld began attacking some of our planets."

"Anyone we know?" Daniel asked.

"No, lesser Goa'uld hungry for power and domination at any cost."

"Ah" Daniel said.

"We will contact you when the threat has been dealt with. I will return you to your base."

"Thank you" Carter said.

The Asguard nodded, and with a flash of light, they were gone.

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O'Neill was pacing in his office when he heard his name over the intercom.

"General O'Neill, please report to the gate room"

He hurried out the door to get to the gate room.

He arrived to see SG 1 and the rest of the teams, plus the occupants of the base. They all looked disoriented.

"General"

"Colonel"

"The Asguard sir"

"Yeah?"

"They gave us a lift home."

"I was about to send somebody after you guys."

"We will debrief you." She said smiling

"Okay" O'Neill said shrugging his shoulders.

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The debriefing was over and SG 1 had been dismissed. Carter was changing into her street clothes and thinking about the days events. The general had decided to pull the base for now, until more information on this threat could be collected. He had also spoken with the Asguard about taking his people with out notifying him of where they were.

She shut her locker and heard a noise behind her. She turned to face O'Neill.

"General"

"Carter"

"I was just heading home for the day sir."

"At ease Colonel."

She smiled. "I think that we need to talk about today."

"Okay, call me when you get home. I should be finished here by then." O'Neill said smiling.

"Okay"

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"Hello?"

"Sir"

"I am just leaving the base."

"Do you want to come over?"

"Sure"

"Okay"

"Be there soon"

The door bell rang and Sam got up from the couch to answer it. It was Jack of course, and he had flowers.

"Thanks" Sam said taking the flowers to the kitchen for water.

Jack plopped down on the couch and changed the channel on the TV.

"What if I was watching that?' Sam asked

He looked up at her smiling face, "Sorry"

The doorbell rang. She looked over at the door. "I wonder who that could be, I never get this much company."

She opened the door to Pete. "Pete" she said

Jack snapped to attention as soon as she said the name. He put down the remote.

"Hello Sam" he said quietly

"Pete, I thought you had left town already."

"I am, right now. I am on my way out. I wanted to give you some of your things back."

"Come in" she said as she guided Pete into the dining room.

"Only for a minute." Pete said, handing Sam a manila envelope.

Sam nodded.

"Sam, I know that he is here." Pete said.

She didn't lie to him. She nodded.

He put his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. "Thank you for the time we had together and for letting me into your world."

She nodded. "I'm sor…" she began. He put his hand to her lips and shook his head.

"Don't. You deserve to be happy even if it can't be me who makes you happy."

"Pete, you made me happy."

"But it wasn't enough Sam. We obviously weren't meant to be."

She didn't speak; tears began to roll down her cheeks. "I…" she started to say something but stopped.

Pete reached out and squeezed her hand. "Good bye Sam. Good luck."

"You too"

He turned and walked out the door. She fell into a heap on the couch face down in the cushions. Her body shuddered with sobs. She sat up and began punching the couch. Jack peered around the corner and was immediately at her side.

"Sam, are you okay?"

"No" she said, face wet with angry tears. "Why the hell didn't he just leave? He wants me to feel this way, damn him." She said punching the couch.

"Come here" he pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. She rested her head on his chest and silently sobbed. It was killing him to see her like this.

"Shh, shh, Sam its okay." He said rocking her gently. He stroked her hair and held her for what seemed hours. Her breathing had become slow and rhythmic. She had cried herself to sleep. She was exhausted. He turned on the TV and watched hockey while she slept.

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	8. Chapter 8

Thanks so much for the reviews and sorry for the posting delay. I've been crazy busy. I was also making some last minute revisions. Hope you enjoy.

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It was morning and Sam was in her bed. She could smell coffee. She opened her eyes and rolled over to find herself alone in bed. She was still in her clothes from the day before. She heard a soft knock at the door. "Come in" She said groggily as she was not quite awake yet.

"Hey there" Jack said

"Hi" she said with a smile.

"Are you hungry?"

"Sure" she pulled the covers off of herself and hopped out of bed. She met him with a hug. "Thanks, for last night, for taking care of me."

"Hey, that's what I am here for."

"I am not usually this emotional."

"I know Sam"

They sat down to eat breakfast. Cereal that Jack prepared himself. He said it was difficult to get all the cheerios in the bowl without spilling. Sam had laughed.

"Cassie is coming home today." Sam said.

"Great, when?"

"This afternoon, I have to go pick her up at the bus station." Cassie had been staying with Janet's parents while Sam was away. Sam told her that she needed a few days to settle back in and get food in the house before Cassie came home.

"So, do we tell her?" Jack asked

"I think she will figure it out."

"How do you think she will react?" Sam asked

"Who knows, she is a teenager."

"Yeah"

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Cassandra Fraiser was boarding a bus to get home; her new home with Sam. She waved goodbye to her adopted grandparents and stepped up onto the bus. Janet's parents had moved closer to Janet in recent years for their retirement. They lived in western Nebraska on a small ranch. Cassie and Janet had spent a few vacations there visiting. It was a big change from Colorado Springs.

Cassie sat down in a seat next to a window. She looked back at the two people who had taken her in while Sam was missing. They had accepted her as family, no questions asked. She smiled, with all the recent events, hopefully things would start settling down. "Finally", she said out loud. She had been shifted around so much in her life. She felt someone sit down in the seat next to her. She looked over, the woman beside her smiled. She was dressed in street clothes, but somehow Cassie knew. She knew that this woman had been assigned to her.

"Couldn't let me travel on my own could they?" Cassie said to the woman next to her. The woman looked confused at first, but then smiled.

"I'm Lena Smithe"

Cassie raised her eyebrows. "What are you…Air force?"

Lena smiled, "Actually, marines."

"I was close." Cassie quipped. "So, you're my babysitter huh? It's not the first time; I suppose it won't be the last." She sighed.

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Lena leaned to look out the window as the bus came to a stop. Cassie was already looking out.

"There" Cassie said pointing out the window.

Lena followed her direction and nodded. Colonel Carter and General O'Neill were waiting outside. "It was nice to meet you Cassandra." Lena said stretching out a hand.

"Yeah, you too" Cassie said, taking her hand. Lena let her out and Cassie proceeded down the isle to the exit. She stepped off the bus and Sam spotted her.

"Cassie!" Sam ran up to her and they hugged tightly.

"Sam I missed you so much."

"I missed you too Cassie."

Jack stepped forward. "Hey there kiddo"

"Hi Jack" Cassie said as she hugged him

"Let's get you home." Sam said motioning towards the car.

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"So, what happened?" Cassie asked after they were safely underway.

Sam and Jack exchanged looks. "We got stuck on a planet with a broken dial home device and it took them a while to find us." Sam said

"Oh. Just the two of you?" Cassie asked

"Yes" Sam said simply. _Keep the answers short Sam._ She thought

"For four months? What did you do for four months with just each other…" Cassie's words slowed as she realized what she was asking.

Sam shifted her weight uncomfortably in the seat. "Mostly we tried to think of ways to get home to you." She said

Jack smiled. _Nice one Carter._ He thought.

Cassie fell silent for the rest of the ride home. As soon as they got everything in the house, Jack announced that he was heading home.

"Please stay for dinner Jack." Cassie pleaded. She grabbed his hand, "I will make dinner for us."

Jack smiled, "In that case, maybe I should stay." He looked at Sam. "But I think you ladies need some time alone."

Cassie turned to Sam. "Sam, make him stay, please."

"What makes you think that I have any control over him?" She smiled

Cassie blinked. "I am not going to answer that."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Cassie"

Cassie looked from Jack to Sam. "Were you planning on telling me?"

Sam sighed. "Alright, alright. Listen; please don't repeat anything we tell you to anyone."

Cassie nodded. "Okay"

"Pinky swear?" Jack asked holding out his finger.

Cassie nodded and shook on it.

Sam took a deep breath. "When we were on the planet together, we kind of crossed that fine line."

Cassie blinked. "Crossed it by how much?"

Jack exhaled loudly.

Sam continued, "Enough to get us both court marshaled."

"But you didn't know if you'd ever be rescued."

"That doesn't matter to the Air force. We should have stayed professional with each other."

Jack flinched. It was his fault. If he had just kept his mouth to himself…

Cassie smiled. "Finally" She giggled. "It's about time." She thought for a minute and her expression changed. "What happened with Pete?"

"It didn't work out. We ended it shortly before Jack and I left." _Well, that statement was somewhat truthful. _Sam thought.

Cassie got a look of concern. "Are you okay Sam?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I am good. I had help" She smiled. Jack came up behind her and squeezed her shoulders.

"Well, you could just tell people that it is my fault you are together; because I want to see Jack and that's why he's here with us."

Sam smiled and nodded. "That's a possibility."

Cassie wrapped her arms around them both. "Thank you so much to both of you. I wouldn't be alive without you. Thank you for giving me a place to belong after…after what happened."

"Of course" Sam said as she hugged her. "We love you."

"Well good cuz you're stuck with me." Cassie grinned.

Cassie made dinner as promised and they all sat down together at Sam's table. Sam and Jack talked about work and Cassie listened. _This feels so right_, she thought. She was glad he had stayed for supper. She had missed them both terribly. Cassie didn't have a lot to tell. The ranch was pretty quiet and uneventful. It was the perfect place to get away. Cassie was more interested to hear stories from their last 'mission'. Jack told her about the lake that wasn't too far from their camp. Sam told her about the cave that they had lived in. Cassie was glued to her seat. After a few hours, Sam and Jack both agreed it was getting late. Cassie protested, but they won out.

Jack had gone home even though Cassie told him it was ok to stay if he wanted to. He told her he thought Sam and her needed some time alone.

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Sam sat by Cassie's bed as she got under the covers.

"Sam?"

"Yes Cassie?"

"I think that I am a little old to be tucked in." Sam smiled and brought the covers up around Cassie's shoulders.

"I know it is just nice to have you home again." Cassie looked up at Sam. Cassie followed her gaze to the picture of Janet next to Cassie's bed.

"Sam, does Jack make you happy?"

Sam's head turned back to Cassie. "Yes" She said cautiously. "You do know how very important it is that you keep this a secret right?"

Cassie nodded. "Yes I know, important like the stargate."

"Yeah"

"Sam?"

"Yes Cassie?"

"I was a little scared that you weren't coming back."

Sam looked her in the eyes. "We were too. But Daniel and Teal'c found us. We came back."

Cassie's eyes started to tear up. "Last time my mom went through the gate, she didn't come back."

Sam's heart sank. She pulled Cassie to her, one hand on the back of her head. Cassie sobbed. Tears sprang to Sam's eyes as she squeezed Cassie harder. They sat there in each others arms until Cassie fell asleep. Sam laid her back against her pillows and covered her up. She shut Cassie's door and decided to head to bed also.


	9. Chapter 9

Reviews yeah! Thanks. Here is chap 9. There is a little bit of a time gap in between chap 8 and 9.

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"Sam, I am fine. I am a big girl; I can take care of myself for a few hours." Cassie said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, you've been home with me for the past two weeks. Go be with him."

"You are way too grown up."

"I know." Cassie giggled. "I will talk to you later."

"Call me if you need anything."

"I will, don't worry."

"No parties while I am gone." Sam teased.

"Okay"

Carter hung up the phone and then called O'Neill.

"Hello" O'Neill answered

"Cassie told me I have to go out tonight."

"Good. I like how that girl thinks."

"I think she wanted to go out tonight."

"Uh huh" O'Neill laughed, "Do we have a curfew?"

Sam smiled. "I hope to be home by midnight."

"Okay, sounds good. Meet you topside in two hours."

"Yes sir"

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Where do you want to eat?" Jack asked.

"Don't know, you pick."

"Okay, I pick burgers."

"Sounds okay to me."

They went out to eat and then they went back to his place after dinner. Jack said they needed to talk somewhere private and with beer. They sat down on the couch side by side. Jack took a drink of his beer.

"Sam, I told Hammond that I want to retire."

She starred at him. "You what?"

"I told him they need to find someone to take over."

She shook her head. "Why? I don't understand."

He took her hands in his. "I'm getting tired of not being able to go on missions. I always feel like I am missing out. I'm not there to watch your six." He paused, "And because of us."

"I can't ask you to give up your career for me."

"You didn't and I am retiring, which I am entitled to do. I have saved the world my fair share. Besides, everything is processed already."

She fell silent. He squeezed her hands and smiled. "I can be there for you and Cassie whenever you need me."

"What if I still need your guidance at work? What do you say to that?"

"They will find a great replacement." He said, "Hammond and the President decided to keep me on as an advisor. So I will still have security clearance."

"It won't be the same."

"No it won't," He paused "But it would give us more freedom."

"What if I screw this relationship up like I did my last one?"

"Carter"

"Well? Really I hope you are not just doing this for me."

"I told you already why. I've made my decision."

She looked him in the eyes. "You are sure this is what you want?"

"Yes."

She hugged him tightly. He kissed her forehead. "We could do this anytime we wanted, where ever we wanted." He said smiling.

She nodded, but was worried. It must have shown.

"Sam, don't worry. I will have enough to keep me busy between you, Cassie, and this new position." He paused, "I already can't be there with you guys. I might as well retire."

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"Daniel, he's going to retire." Sam said solemnly.

"Jack? Again?"

"Yeah, but this time it is for real."

"Why?"

She shot him a look.

"Oh, I see. Wow, no pressure."

"Yeah"

"When is all this supposed to happen?" Daniel asked.

"Effective as soon as they find a replacement."

"Great, under new management. At least Jack was predictable. We know where he stands on things."

"Yeah, it will be strange for a while." Sam said

Daniel sat down on a stool across from her. "How do you feel about all this?"

Sam sighed. "I don't know. I have mixed feelings. On one hand I am happy, but on the other I am concerned that he is doing this for me, just for me."

"And you feel like if something doesn't work out he'll blame you."

"Oh yes and no. I don't think he would blame me, but I kinda like what we have. Do I really want to risk screwing that up?"

"Ah yes, the whole 'being friends when you've been more' scenario." Daniel said.

Sam nodded. Just then there was a knock at the door. "Come in" she said

Jack peeked around the door. "Hey there campers"

"Hi Jack" Daniel said, getting up from the stool.

"Whatcha doin?"

"We were talking about our last mission." Sam lied

"Okay"

"Did you need something sir?"

"Well I guess I just came to tell you I just received confirmation about retirement. It's a done deal."

"So, do they have many candidates?" Daniel asked

"Yeah, one or two"

"Great" Sam said unconvincingly

Jack looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I have got a lot of work to do." Daniel said, pushing in his stool and moving towards the door.

"Okay, see you later Daniel"

"Later Danny boy"

"Bye" Daniel said and was out the door.

They were alone.

"Carter"

"Yes sir"

"How are you doing today?"

She had decided to be honest this time. "Pretty good until a few minutes ago."

"Are you upset with me?" Jack asked

She sighed, "No, I am just worried."

"I would tell you not to worry, but you will anyway."

She nodded. "I should get back to work; I need to get this finished before tomorrow." She said, pointing to the project on her lab table.

"Okay, I will talk to you later then." Jack turned and left the room.

Sam put her head in her hands and exhaled loudly.

She had realized that they could not do this. They could not keep seeing each other like they were now that they were home. They were not on that planet anymore. There were no ranks or regulations there. Sam was grateful in some ways that they had not 'consummated' their relationship on that planet. Things would be much more difficult if they had, she decided. But now he was changing the rules again. He was retiring, almost retired. She could do nothing about it. She would have to face up to her fears. Everyone that had cared for her was dead. Except for Pete, and Felger, 'but he doesn't count', she thought. And then there's McKay, but he might as well be dead. We sent him on a non return trip to Atlantis. She had lost so many over the years, Jonas Hanson, Martouf, Orlin, and Narim. Well technically, she had killed Jonas.

And then there was Jack. _He has made it this long_. She thought.

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Sam had a ton of projects to catch up on, but she had put some of them on hold. She had been trying to spend some time with Cassie. They even took a long weekend to get out of Colorado Springs. They stayed in a hotel, swam, ate out, shopped, and went to movies. Sam had tried to always come home at night instead of staying on the base; when not off world. She knew that Cassie did not like being alone. Sam on the other hand, was used to it. It had been strange at first, having someone else around the house, but she was getting accustomed to it.

Dating Pete and having Cassie living with her complicated things a bit. Cassie was an out spoken woman, but Sam could tell that Cassie did her best to hold back when it came to Pete. Sam was pretty sure that Cassie was not wild about her and Pete being together.

"Oh well, that's over now." She said to herself.

Her lab was quiet. The technician had gone home an hour ago. Her stomach rumbled. Sam looked at her watch, 2200 hours. She had forgotten to eat supper, and lunch for that matter. She decided to go find something to eat. Cassie was staying with a friend tonight, so Sam would probably stay on the base. She wandered over to Daniel's office. He was translating some text that SG 4 had brought back from their latest mission.

Sam knocked on the door frame. Daniel looked up. "Sam, hi" He said as he looked down at his watch.

"Hey Daniel" She said walking towards him. "You wanna go get something to eat with me?"

Daniel smiled. "Cassie not home tonight?"

"Nope. She's off having fun without me tonight." Sam said.

"Ah, I see" Daniel said, closing the book in front of him. "I think Jack is still here. Do you want to go see if he wants to come with us?"

Sam grinned. "Ah, sure"

"Okay, let's go"

They found O'Neill in his office with a large stack of paperwork. "Danny, I thought you would never come rescue me." O'Neill said as Daniel entered his office. Sam followed Daniel in and O'Neill raised an eyebrow. "Carter working late?"

"Yes sir, Cassie ditched me tonight."

"Ah" He said simply.

Daniel spoke up. "We were going to grab something to eat."

O'Neill nodded. "A piece of pie would hit the spot right about now."

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They had finished eating and Daniel excused himself. He said he wanted to get back to the text, but Sam suspected he was trying to get her and the general alone together. He had succeeded. The commissary was empty, it was 0030 hours.

"So, how are things going with Cassie?" O'Neill asked

"Good" Sam said.

"Good" he replied

Jack looked into her eyes. She averted his gaze.

"Carter, I was wondering if there was sometime that we could talk; about stuff."

"I don't know sir; I am working on a few different projects here at the SGC. At home I have Cassie. My free time has been scarce lately."

O'Neill reached across the table and touched Carter's hand. She did not pull back.

"We may have to make some time." He said, locking his eyes with hers.

She understood. They needed to talk some things out, but there just hadn't been time.

"I'll check my schedule." She said.

"Okay, let me know." He said.

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	10. Chapter 10

Sorry this took so long...I had some revisons to do. And I am working on other stories at the same time. So its been slow going. Thanks for the reviews.

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It had been a week since O'Neill had received confirmation of resignation. He had had another week of duty before he was officially retired. It had been a difficult week, knowing that this would be the last week he would be officially involved with the star gate. He spent a few nights roaming the corridors. He would drop in on Daniel to see what he was working on and bug him. He also occasionally dropped in on Carter, but she always seemed too busy to talk. He decided that pushing him away was her way of coping. He tried to respect her decision, but he missed her and couldn't resist the chance to make her smile.

Jack was sitting in his office reading one of the last few reports that he ever had to read before heading to find something to eat with Teal'c. There was a knock at his door.

"Come in" he said still reading.

Carter opened the door and laid some files on his desk. "Here are the latest reports sir."

He looked up at her. She looked exhausted. He would've told her to take a day off if he knew that she would. But he suspected that she was working more than normal.

"Thanks Carter, I'll get to them as soon as I can."

She nodded and turned to leave.

"Carter"

She turned to face him. "Yes sir?"

"They are bringing in my replacement today so I can show him the ropes. I would like it if you and the guys would be here."

"Yes sir, when?"

"1500 hours"

"Okay, I will let Daniel and Teal'c know."

"Thanks Colonel"

She smiled. "Yes sir" With that, she left him alone with his pile of paperwork.

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"General Baxter, this is Colonel Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c. They make up SG 1." O'Neill explained.

"SG1 that was the team you were part of was it not general?" Baxter asked.

"Yeah, they are my old team. It was great serving with all of them. Even Daniel." O'Neill said.

"Thanks Jack." Daniel said sarcastically, extending his hand to General Baxter.

"Good to finally be meeting the people who have saved all of our butts on more than one occasion." Baxter said, shaking the rest of SG1's hands.

O'Neill smiled. He wasn't sure yet, but he thought he might like this guy.

"We are going to have your mission briefing so that General Baxter can see how they work." O'Neill said opening the door to the briefing/debriefing room.

Carter led the briefing as always. It was a particularly uninteresting one as briefings go, but O'Neill tried to stay with her. After it was over, General Baxter asked some questions and Carter gave him the same cryptic answers that she always gave.

"In English Carter." O'Neill spoke up.

She raised an eyebrow and continued in 'O'Neill terms'.

General Baxter thanked them all for their help and said his goodbyes, stating that he had more reading to catch up on.

O'Neill finally had his team; his friends alone.

"Thanks for helping me out with this. I figured the best way for him to learn about us was to experience some the workings. I want you all to know that serving with you has been one of the greatest things I have ever done. You are the best to me, but of course I am biased." O'Neill smiled.

"We love you too Jack." Daniel said.

"Daniel, you turned out alright. We got off to a rocky start, but you are one the coolest geeks I know."

Daniel smiled.

"Teal'c, you're the man. We have come a long way because of you. You have saved my butt countless times. Thanks T."

"Indeed, I too owe you for my life here on earth. I would still be in service to the Goa'uld if it had not been for you."

"Carter" O'Neill paused, "You are the brains of this outfit. You have gotten us out of so many scrapes. I am proud of you. Thanks for keeping us alive out there. You are definitely way smarter than me."

Sam smiled and nodded.

"Now, you are all dismissed so you can get ready for the BBQ. That's an order."

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It was a party at Jack's. Most of the base was there, even General Hammond made it. Daniel took lots of video with his camera. Cassie took pictures of SG 1, the original team. As the evening wore on, the party's patrons dwindled. Soon all that were left were Jack, Sam, Daniel, and Teal'c. Cassie took Sam's car home because she was meeting some friends. Jack assured Cassie that he would get Sam home safely. The four sat in the living room. Daniel was harassing Sam about a mission they had just returned from. She had gotten two 'marriage' proposals from some natives. Sam just slugged him in the arm.

"So" Daniel said, attempting to get conversation started. "What are you going to do first now that you are retired?"

Jack smiled. "Absolutely nothing. Sleep in, drink beer, watch TV, and sit outside on my deck. Stuff like that."

"Ah, I think I need to retire." Daniel said smiling.

"You will surely be missed O'Neill." Teal'c said.

"Thanks T; I will miss you guys too."

Sam had been fairly quiet for most of the evening. Except when each of the members of SG 1 were telling their best O'Neill story. Jack was reminded of some of his not so great moments.

Daniel loved the story telling, but the night had to come to an end. He looked down at his watch. "Well Teal'c, we better get moving if we are going to get you back before curfew."

Teal'c raised an eyebrow.

Jack shook his head at Daniel's humor.

Daniel and Teal'c headed back to the base and Jack and Sam were alone. Jack grabbed a beer and motioned Sam outside to the deck. They sat side by side, looking up at the night sky.

Jack spoke first. "So, you've been quiet tonight."

Sam nodded, "Yeah"

Jack's brows furrowed. "Sam, what's up?"

She sighed. "I just can not believe it is over."

"I know time flies when you are saving the world."

She smiled.

"C'mere Sam"

He put his arm around her and she put her head on his shoulder. They sat there in silence for almost an hour before Jack spoke.

"Do you want me to take you home?"

Sam was practically asleep. "Yeah, I should get home to Cassie." She said slowly. He nodded.

"C'mon" he helped her stand up and grabbed his keys. "Let's go."

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"Goodnight Sam" Jack said after he parked his truck in front of her house.

She looked up at him. "Good night Jack" They hugged and he kissed her forehead. She got out and headed to her door. Jack made sure she got in okay and then drove off.

Cassie was still up when Sam came in.

"I didn't expect you back" Cassie said.

"I am here and ready for bed." Sam said.

"Do you need to talk?" Cassie asked.

Sam smiled, "No, I just need sleep."

"Okay, I will see you in the morning then." Cassie said, grabbing a snack from the fridge.

"Okay, goodnight." Sam said as she headed towards her bedroom.

_At last, my bed._ She thought, I_ never thought I would get here today._

She put her pajamas on and slid under the covers. She lay on her back and thought about the day's events. She had been hard on Jack lately, she knew that. But it had to be that way. She couldn't focus with thoughts of him leaving racing through her head. It was distracting. She had so much on her mind lately. Jack leaving, a new leader, Cassie, her dad, let alone current missions, projects and problems. She tried to focus on work. It was piling up no that everything was changing hands. They had to break in a new leader. She was not sure how he was going to react to her. He seemed okay so far, but some men are threatened by women like her. She had to stop thinking and get to sleep. She wasn't supposed to work tomorrow, but she needed to get some work done. Cassie was going to be out the whole day anyway. She closed her eyes and tried to think happy thoughts.

Jack decided that he wasn't at all tired and he didn't want to go home to an empty house. He wanted Sam to be there, but obviously she wasn't. She'd been so distant with him lately, especially tonight. Yes, there were some changes ahead; but he somehow thought that she would handle it differently. This retirement thing really had her shook. 'Maybe I just need to give her some time' he thought. 'Go to Minnesota for a week. Give her some time to resolve some issues.' He parked his truck in the lot of an all night diner. 'Yeah, I think that is what I'll do.'

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The phone rang as Sam got in the door. She threw her stuff down on the table and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey there" Jack's voice came over the receiver. Sam hadn't talked to him since he got back from 'fishing'. He had left messages. She had been meaning to call him, but she wasn't home much and when she was she was sleeping. She also suspected that subconsciously she was avoiding him.

"Hi"

"You are hard to get a hold of" He said

"Yeah, I have been working a lot lately. I haven't even been home to read my mail."

"Samantha"

"I know, I know. But things are a little bit crazy right now. General Baxter is just getting used to the program and the base. He got lost the other day."

"That bad huh?"

"No, not really, just different. You and Hammond had a lot longer time to get aquatinted. This is the fourth leader the program has had in two years."

"Yeah, I know, I am sorry."

There was a brief silence.

"Well, I really should get some sleep before I fall asleep standing here." Sam said.

"Okay" Jack said solemnly. He didn't sound happy at all. But Sam really was tired.

"I will talk to you soon."

"Yeah, okay"

"Nite"

"Yeah, goodnight Carter"

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	11. Chapter 11

Here's chapter 11. Just one more chapter to go. Thanks for reading!

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"Daniel, I think she's avoiding me." Jack said as they sat down in the pub.

Daniel looked down at the table. "She's been working a lot lately. I don't think even Cassie has seen her much this past week." He looked back up at Jack.

"I know. I either get the machine or I get Cassie telling me she's not there. I would call her at the base, but I don't want to bother her at work." He said, obviously frustrated.

"My suggestion would be to enlist Cassie's help." Daniel pulled out the drink menu. "I am sure she'd be more than willing to help."

Jack nodded. "Yeah, that's an idea."

Daniel raised a hand to hail a waitress. A blonde woman saw Daniel and rushed over. "What can I get yah?" She asked with a smile.

Daniel and Jack both ordered food and drinks, and the waitress headed for the bar.

Daniel had asked Sam to join them, but she said she had a project for General Baxter to work on. Teal'c was off world visiting Ryac and his wife. He was due back in two days. Daniel on the other hand wasn't working on anything in particular.

Their food arrived, they ate and both had a few drinks. They played pool and Daniel lost badly. Jack said he had beat Daniel enough for one night. They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.

Jack got into his truck and dialed his cell phone. It was ringing.

Cassie answered. "Hello?"

"Hey Cass, its Jack" He said.

"Hi Jack"

"Cassie, is Sam home?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Nope. I don't expect her home tonight. Although she hasn't called me yet. There may still be hope." Cassie said.

"Well, actually, I need to talk to you too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I was wondering if you could do me a favor."

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Jack hadn't seen Sam for three weeks, since the BBQ. She had one excuse after another. Then Cassie invited him to dinner, hoping Jack and Sam could straighten things out. Cassie told Sam that she had to be there. Enough was enough.

Cassie made dinner for the three of them. Since Cassie made the dinner, Sam and Jack said they would clean up. Cassie sat down in the living room to watch TV. Sam and Jack headed to the kitchen with the dishes.

"So, how've you been?" Jack asked as he put plates in the dishwasher."

"Good. We are good." Sam replied.

"Good"

"How is retirement going?" Sam asked quickly.

"Okay, although I haven't spent much time alone with my girlfriend." He paused, "If she wants that anymore."

"Jack, work has been hectic, and Cassie…"

"I know. But if you don't want to spend time with me, just say it."

"It's not that, I just thought that we needed some time apart." Sam said, wiping off the counter.

Cassie walked in the kitchen and retrieved a glass from the cupboard. The phone rang. "I'll get it." She said as she headed for the phone.

"Hello? Oh hi. Yeah, sure. Okay, bye." She hung up the phone.

"Sam, is it okay if I stay at Joanna's tonight and then go shopping with her tomorrow? I'll call you when I get done."

Sam nodded. "Sure, go have some fun. I will see you tomorrow."

Cassie hugged Sam and whispered in her ear. "Thanks, have fun tonight." Sam smiled. Cassie had planned this all along.

Cassie went to her room to get her things as Sam yelled after her. "Do you need a ride?"

Cassie's car was in the shop.

"No, I will call Joanna to come get me."

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Cassie had just left. Sam and Jack settled down to watch a movie. Jack scooted close to Sam and stroked her hair. She laid her head in his lap. He rubbed her shoulders and her back. She sighed deeply.

"So now what?" Jack asked.

Sam rolled over onto her back, so she was looking up at him. She smiled. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. She sat up and grabbed a hold of his hand and squeezed it tightly. He smiled.

Sam leaned in and kissed him. She stood slowly and pulled his arm. He stood and she led them to her bedroom.

He sat down on her bed and bounced a few times, grinning. Sam pushed him over and lay on her back next to him.

"Watcha thinking about?" Jack asked.

Sam sighed. "Work, Cassie, us." She said, putting her hands over her face.

Jack put his hand on her thigh. Sam stiffened. He rolled onto his side and pulled her hands from her face. He looked into those beautiful blue eyes. "We don't have to do this." He said quietly.

She bit her lip and looked away.

"Sam" He said, "Try to relax for once will yah."

She closed her eyes. "I am trying, but I keep thinking about work and… and… everything else that has happened lately."

"No thinking about work allowed." He said in a commanding tone. "Sam, do you trust me?"

She opened her eyes. "Of course with my life."

"But with your heart?"

She rolled onto her side with her back to him. "I am afraid that everything will change."

"Everything has changed."

She rolled back to face him. "No, we could still go back if we had to. It would be hard, but we could."

He sighed. "Is that what you want?"

She looked away. "I just…I…" She sighed.

"You're scared."

She ran her fingers through her hair. He laid his hand on the side of her face. "So am I" he said softly. She looked into his eyes.

"Come here Sam." He said, bringing his arm around her shoulders. She scooted her body towards him and he held her tightly.

"I am sorry" She said into his chest.

"Don't say that. There's no reason to be sorry. I don't want this unless we both are ready. There is no rush. You just got out of a serious relationship and jumped into another one."

She looked up at him. "I love you." She said.

"I know. I love you too."

She brought her lips to his and kissed him tenderly. She gently kissed his jaw line, and then his neck. Caressing his face with her hand, she used the other to roll him onto his back. He looked up at her with raised eyebrows. She slid her hands up under his shirt and traced the curves of his body with her hands; leaning in to kiss his chin, then his lips.

Jack wanted her more than anything, but he wanted her to be sure. She helped him remove his shirt and undid his belt. 'Okay, so maybe she was sure.' He thought. He tried to speak, but she quieted him with a forceful kiss. She pressed her body against his and helped him finish undressing. He ran his hands along her sides and down to her hips. She slowly undressed and leaned onto him, warm bodies pressed together. Two bodies moving in rhythm as one.

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They lay side by side on their backs.

"How are you doin'?" Jack asked, hoping she felt as good as he did.

"Great" She answered as she found his hand with hers and intertwined their fingers. She looked over at him. "You?"

Jack smiled. In fact, he hadn't stopped smiling. "I'm good."

She grinned. "Years of repression…"

He rolled over on top of her. He ran his hand through her hair. It was tousled and sticking up. He straightened it and let his hand run down from her hair to her cheek. "This feels like a dream." Jack said smiling.

Sam grinned. "It's not." She said, pinching his arm. Jack leaned down and kissed her. He felt like he could kiss her forever.

"Jack"

"Sam"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure"

She took a deep breath. "How did you feel when I told you about Pete?"

He sighed and rose up on his forearms. "I was happy for you." Irritated slightly that she was talking about this now.

"Are you sure?" She asked, searching his brown eyes for the truth.

"Carter, I want to see you happy, no matter who it is with. I would've rather it been me, but that wasn't an option at the time." He said, stroking her cheek.

She smiled. "I think it was more of a physical relationship than love."

"I didn't need to hear that part."

The phone rang. Sam got up and answered it. "Hello? Oh hi Daniel. No I am good." She smiled at Jack. "Tomorrow? Nothing yet. Lunch?" She looked at Jack and he nodded. "That sounds great. Yeah? Daniel says hi Jack." She blushed. "Talk to you tomorrow. Bye Daniel."

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The sun was barely up when they rose and headed for the shower. They had just finished when they heard the front door open and close. Cassie was back. Sam hurried to put clothes on and went out to see her.

"Cassie, you're home early."

"Sam, I am so sorry," She said, "Joanna got sick this morning; I think we ate too much junk food last night."

Sam smiled. "That's okay."

Cassie motioned towards the bed room. "Jack?"

Sam blushed. "Yeah"

Cassie grinned. "Good"

Sam cleared her throat. "We are going to lunch with Daniel and Teal'c. Do you want to come?"

"Sure" Cassie replied. "Jack. You can come out now." She yelled.

Jack peeked around the corner from the stairs. "Are you sure?"

Cassie giggled. "Uh huh."

Jack walked out into the living room. He gave Cassie one of his winning smiles.

Cassie slugged him in the shoulder.

Sam spoke up. "Cassie, I am going to ask you something and I want you to be honest."

"Okay"

Sam slowly continued. "I want to know if this is okay, I mean for Jack to be here, in the morning."

Cassie smiled. "You mean do I mind if he stays overnight. No."

Sam nodded. "Okay"

"Okay" Cassie repeated. "I am going to take a shower and get ready." She grabbed her bag and headed for her room.

"That went well." Jack said, grinning.

"She's so grown up." Sam said, shaking her head,

"Yeah."

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	12. Chapter 12

So here it is...the last chapter. Thanks so much for reading! The reviews are also great. Thanks again.

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"So, how are things?" Daniel asked Jack.

"Good" Jack answered.

"The SGC is not the same without you O'Neill." Teal'c said.

"Aw T, do you miss me?"

"Indeed"

They were all sitting around a table in a large booth; Daniel, Teal'c, Jack, Sam, and Cassie. Food had been ordered, and they were waiting for it to arrive.

"Sam isn't your dad due in today?" Daniel asked.

"Yeah, he's coming in this afternoon. I am going to go pick him up at the base."

"When was the last time he was here?" Daniel asked, taking a drink of soda.

"Right after we got back from the planet." Sam answered. "They have been keeping him very busy lately."

Daniel nodded. The food arrived. They ate, talked about old times and new ones. Teal'c gave news of Ryac and his bride, Daniel talked about a new text he was working on, and Cassie gushed about preparing for college.

Sam looked at her watch. "We should get going, Dad should be here soon."

They said their goodbyes, hugs given all around and parted ways. Daniel and Teal'c to Daniel's; Jack, Sam, and Cassie to the base. When they got to the base, Cassie opted to stay in the car. Sam and Jack signed in and rode the elevator down towards the gate room. They stepped out of the elevator and heard the familiar sounds of an alarm signifying gate travel.

"That might be him now." Sam said as they walked down the corridor. They entered the gate room to see Jacob and Anise/Freya stepping through the gate.

"Oh great" Jack muttered.

Jacob went to Sam at once and hugged her tightly. "How's my girl?" He asked.

"Good Dad, I'm good. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, sure. Freya came along to talk with the new leader of the SGC." Jacob said.

"Ah" Jack said.

"Jack, good to see you. I have to thank you for keeping my little girl safe."

"You mean, kept me safe." Jack said, flashing a smile.

Jacob nodded.

"Shall we dad?"

"Sure"

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On the ride home, Selmak decided to ask a question. "Did all of this happen while you were on that planet together?"

Sam was caught off guard. "All of what?"

"This relationship you two have."

"What rel…" Sam said, until Jack laid a hand on her knee.

"Your father is having a difficult time dealing with this." Selmac said.

Sam looked in the rearview mirror and saw her father bow his head and look back up at her. He was back; and he was silent the rest of the way back to Sam's house. So was everyone else.

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"Jack, can I talk to my daughter alone?" Jacob asked in a slightly raised voice.

"Yeah, sure. C'mon Cass, let's go outside for a bit." He motioned to Cassie to follow him.

He and Cassie headed for the back door. Once they were out, Jacob spoke.

"What were you thinking! Were you thinking about your career? How long has this been going on?" He took a deep breath after the barrage of questions.

Sam answered calmly. "We were thinking that we wouldn't be rescued. Career? Jack retired."

"What if you had gotten caught?"

"We didn't. We didn't really start seeing each other again until recently. After Jack retired."

"Selmak is telling me to calm down. But it is hard Sam. You're my little girl; you always will be to me. I just worry, that's all." Jacob said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Dad, I have to live my own life. I make my own choices and accept the results whatever they may be." Sam said, sitting down on the couch.

Jacob sat down next to her. "I guess I am hurt that you didn't tell me sooner."

Sam smiled. "We couldn't risk telling many people."

"I know, I know"

Just then, Jack stuck his head through the back door. "Is it safe to come in?" He asked.

Jacob shot him a harsh look. Sam stood up and walked over to him, pulling him in. They walked over to the couch and Sam sat next to her dad. Jack stood next to her. "Sorry, I would've given you more time, but I have to pee."

Sam giggled.

"Jack"

"Jacob" Jack said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Sam tells me you two have decided to have a relationship."

Jack let out a sigh through clenched teeth. He looked over at Sam, who was looking sternly at her father; daring him to say the wrong thing.

"Ah yeah, we did" Here_ it comes_, he thought.

Jacob nodded. "When did this start? Before or after this last mission you had together?"

Sam shot him a sour look. "We've already discussed this Dad. I am not a teenager, you don't have to grill him for information."

Jack put up a hand. "Nothing happened on the planet Jacob."

"Nothing? Are you sure?"

"We kissed dad." Sam spat.

Jacob gritted his teeth. "Sam…"

Jack interrupted. "Jacob, I could never hurt Sam. You have to know that. Please, just give it a chance."

Jacob opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. He nodded and stood up, walking over to a picture of him and Sam when she was young. Sam folded her arms across her chest and looked over at her father. She managed a small smile. Jacob turned to look at her and smiled back.

"I just want you to be happy Sammie."

"I know dad."

"Jack" Jacob said sternly.

"I know Jacob, I know." Jack said.

"Well then, let's get something to eat. Gate travel always makes me hungry." He said with a grin.

"Cassie," Jack called, "You can come out now."

Cassie came out of the den, grinning. She had snuck around and come through the front door.

"C'mon, let's get this show on the road." Jacob said. Cassie headed towards the kitchen and Jack towards the bathroom.

Sam stood up next to her father. Jacob turned to her and took her hands in his. "Sam, I love you. I just don't want to see you hurt."

"I know Dad. Jack's a good guy."

"I know. I also know he quit the Air Force for you."

Sam grimaced. Jacob continued. "I guess it scared me, how serious you two are."

Sam smiled. "Me too dad."

They heard Jack coming towards the living room. "Jacob, do you want to help me get some steaks on the grill?"

"I'd be glad to."


End file.
